Lily's Prince Charming
by K.R. Saks
Summary: When Lily Evans wants a Prince Charming, who's up for the job? "What?" James cried, jumping up and smacking his head against the wall. "You want me to be Lily's Prince Charming?" Yup, that's right.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: **All familiar characters belong to JK Rowling!

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**And So It Begins**

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From the very moment Lily Evans stepped into Hogwarts, she had never intended to be a prefect, never thought that she'd surpass all her peers and become Head Girl, and never in her life believed that she'd be the most favored student of such a queer professor as Slughorn. Things had piled one after another, and before Lily knew it, she had built herself an unalterable image.

But she had never wanted to be such a goody-two-shoes. She hated the jealousy that was directed at her, the attention she received from one particularly annoying James Potter, and her overall image of being incapable of doing wrong.

Lily, despite common belief, wanted a fairytale. She wanted the candlelight dinner, the romantic stroll under the moonlight, and most important of all, the kiss-to-end-all-kisses. And there was one person who could give her all this: her very own Prince Charming.

But she had never gotten any of it. Instead, she was laden with everything she had not wanted.

And there was no one who knew of this, except for one girl by name of Jamie Potter. And of course, when Lily had told all this to her best friend, who was coincidentally the twin sister of the person Lily hated the most in the world, she had burst out laughing and had said that Lily was out of her mind.

But Lily wasn't out of her mind. She had just accidentally set up a different image from the person she actually was because she wanted to prove that she was just as capable as the purebloods in the school.

And now it was already her seventh year, her last year before she would go off to become either an Auror or Healer, jobs that would leave no room for further fantasies.

Lily stared morosely at the drumstick on her plate, half hoping that if she took a bit out of it, it would turn into the Prince of Turkey before her eyes.

"Lily, are you daydreaming about your chicken leg again?"

Lily snapped out of her stupor and scowled when she noticed that the chicken leg remained as meat-like as before. "There's no reason to get rid of a perfectly good fantasy."

Jamie snorted and gulped down her pumpkin juice. She slammed the goblet onto the table. "I find myself in disagreement with you."

"What's wrong with daydreaming?"

"Nothing." Jamie jabbed her fork in front of Lily's face. "But when you start fantasizing that your chicken is going to turn into Prince Charming, you have to admit that you have some serious mental issues."

"Well it's not _my _fault that the boys in our school aren't charming enough!"

The Gryffindor table fell silent.

Lily flushed a deep scarlet when she realized that she had accidentally been a bit too vocal about her thoughts.

There was a clatter as an indignant fork hit a plate, and a second later, Sirius Black jumped out of his seat. "How you wound me, Evans!" he cried, placing a hand dramatically on his chest. "Do you not consider me handsome or charming enough?"

Lily seriously contemplated crawling under the table.

Jamie glanced at Lily, and seeing that she was too embarrassed to reply, stood up and shouted, "I'm glad you finally see the truth, Black! I'm proud of you!"

Sirius' jaw dropped and he reached out and smacked James on the head. "Look at that! Just look at that!" He jabbed his finger viciously at Jamie. "Your sister has betrayed us!"

Remus rubbed his temples tiredly. "Padfoot, will you kindly shut up? You're giving me a migraine."

But, like predicted, Sirius completely ignored his friend and let out a loud war cry that startled many innocent onlookers in the Great Hall. "We have a traitor in the midst! A traitor!" And then he promptly transfigured his goblet into a stake and pointed it at Jamie, who was scowling rather fiercely. "Hands up, fiend! This stake has no eyes!"

Lily dropped her hands from her face in exasperation. Jamie, on the other hand, looked like she was about to commit murder. She snarled and marched towards James, who had slumped in his seat in an attempt to hide.

"Get up," Jamie demanded, pulling James out of his seat by the collar of his robes. He stumbled as she shoved him towards Sirius, who was still howling like a barbarian. "Why are you letting him bash me like this? Stand up for your sister, for Merlin's sake!"

All students in the Great Hall were now watching with rapt attention. Lily could hardly believe her eyes. How did one simple question lead to such a big commotion? And honestly, it was over nothing at all.

James looked pained and exasperated at the same time. Sirius narrowed his eyes and dropped his voice to a menacing hiss. "I see how it is," he said silkily. "Betraying your best mate when the time comes, right?"

"Well actually," James began, but Jamie cut him off.

"Of course he'd stand on _my _side, Black," she said snidely. "He's my brother in case you've forgotten."

Sirius crossed his arms with the stake still in his hand. "Well, Potter, your _brother_ just happens to be _my _best mate."

"But he's still my brother."

"And my best mate."

"Family comes before friends."

"I believe it's the other way around, girl."

James licked his lips. "You know, even though I really appreciate the fact that you guys are fighting over me, I really don't think…"

"Shut up!" Sirius shouted, at the exact same time Jamie said, "You never think anyway."

James' mouth fell open. "I'll have you two know that I'm _extremely _offended and…"

Jamie brushed him off with a dismissive wave. "Oh save your dramatics."

Remus suddenly let out a loud sigh and he stood up slowly, as if it was an extremely tasking thing to do. "I think I have an apology to make," he said, addressing the entire student body. "I'm afraid it's my fault this time."

Everyone stared at him.

"I just finished telling Sirius about a new Muggle novel I read, and I'm afraid he's pretty much obsessed with it now." He gestured towards Sirius, who was still brandishing his stake rather dangerously. "He's just trying to reenact a scene. It's nothing to worry about."

James snorted on the side.

Peter leaned over and whispered something to him, and the two started snickering rather sinisterly a moment later.

That seemed to break the tense silence that had formed between Jamie and Sirius. Jamie rounded on James, whose eyes widened when he saw her dangerous expression.

"Why do you _always _have to play the middleman?" she protested.

James shrugged helplessly. "You're my sister and Padfoot's my best mate. I can't exactly choose between you two."

Sirius scoffed, but he returned the stake to its original form nevertheless. "That's just your excuse for not wanting to help me."

Jamie crossed her arms. "Don't tell me you're trying to be noble now," she said, addressing James.

He grinned and ran a hand through his hair in that typically cocky way of his. Lily couldn't help but roll her eyes when she saw that signature gesture. It was just so _him_.

"The girls love me," he said brightly. "What can I say?"

Lily nearly gagged. Jamie shook her head shamefully at James and then stalked back to Lily. She was practically fuming when she slid back into her seat.

"I can't believe I'm related to him," she muttered.

Lily laughed and patted her friend sympathetically. "It's okay. At least you're saner than he is."

Jamie rested her chin on her hand morosely. "I suppose." She suddenly let out a huff of annoyance and turned to Lily with a rather incredulous look. "And I _still _can't believe that Sirius made such a big deal out of your comment. Seriously."

"Well he's always been the dramatic one." Lily fiddled with her golden fork. "And even through all that, I still don't have my prince charming." She shot Jamie a look. "Maybe you're right. I _should _just give up."

Jamie raised an eyebrow. "You're finally seeing the light?"

"You did say that…"

"There are no decent guys in Gryffindor," she cut in, nodding fervently. "Ravenclaws are too snobby, Hufflepuffs are such pushovers, and Slytherins are just plain nasty."

Lily blew out a sigh. "Is it _that _hard to find a gentleman these days? One who would just be there for you when you need him, care about you, cherish you for who you are…" She stopped short, noticing that her friend was no longer paying attention to her. Instead, Jamie had a faraway look in her eyes, as if she was thinking hard about something.

"Um… Jamie?"

Jamie suddenly snapped out of her trance. "Merlin Lily," she breathed. "I think I have the perfect idea!"

Lily was skeptical. "Idea? _You _have a brilliant idea? Jamie, your ideas always end up disastrous one way or another."

Jamie scowled, but she didn't seem as annoyed by the comment as she normally would've been. "It's different this time!" She crammed the last bit of mashed potatoes into her mouth, grabbed an apple, and jumped out of her seat. "See you in class!"

Lily watched in surprise as Jamie ran towards James, pulled him out of his seat while he was still attempting to fork a piece of filet mignon into his mouth, and shot out of the Great Hall with him in tow.

Jamie's great idea involved _James_?

Hell was about to break loose.

* * *

Jamie smirked in triumph as she shoved her protesting brother against the wall. She would not be deprived of such an ingenious idea. She only wondered why she hadn't thought of it sooner.

James groaned in exasperation. "What is it _now_?"

She shook a finger in front of his face. "One more word of complaint and even Dad won't be able to save you."

He lifted an eyebrow. "Are you and Mum going to lock me in the basement and starve me to death like you threatened to do last time?" He smirked, amused by the memory. "Don't you remember what happened afterwards? Who was the one who ended up _begging _me to let her out of the basement?"

Jamie very nearly punched him. "Can't you just shut up and listen?"

He tilted his head skeptically. "Are you _sure _we're related? Even I'm not as violent as you are and I'm a guy!"

She eyed him, unimpressed. "What about all the things you did to Snape?"

James snorted. "He deserved it."

"It's not like you don't." When he opened his mouth again, Jamie pointed her wand at his nose. "I'm going to magically silence you if you don't listen up, and I swear I'll do it."

"Okay, okay, Ms. Potter. Fire away."

Jamie nodded and sheathed her wand. "It's about Lily." She watched in amusement as her brother's eyes lit up immediately. "You see, she's always wanted some things ever since First Year, but she's never gotten them. And truthfully, she's going a little crazy now."

James looked incredulous. "Why didn't her parents buy it for her?" He threw his hands up. "Bloody hell, why didn't you just say so? I'll just give her the key to my Gringotts' account! She can have anything then."

Jamie scowled when he started to leave and yanked him back. "No, you bloody idiot. What Lily wants can't be bought."

He blinked, deflating slightly. "Oh."

"She wants her very own Prince Charming," she said. James' brows knitted. "She wants the classic candlelight dinner, the romantic stroll under the moonlight, and most important of all, the breathtaking kiss-to-end-all-kisses."

James was looking _very _surprised by the end of that. Jamie smirked. Just how well did her brother really know Lily? He had memorized her schedule, her likes and dislikes, and recorded all the insults she had thrown at him so he could turn them into pickup lines the next time he saw her. And he _thought _he knew her.

"Are you serious?" James looked dubious. "Lily Evans? Wanting _that _kind of stuff?"

Jamie narrowed her eyes. "What's wrong with that?"

"Well…nothing, but _Lily_?" He shook his head. "I don't believe it. She doesn't seem like the type."

"Yes James, she doesn't _seem _like the type. But I've been her friend for six years. I would know."

He nodded slowly. "All right. And you told me this because…"

"I want to make her fairytale come true," Jamie said promptly.

James looked confused for a moment, before his eyes widened in comprehension and a large smile spread across his face. He looked triumphant. "All right then! We've got ourselves a plan." He was enthralled by the idea. "And we'll just divide up the work. Peter can go on a stroll with Lily and Sirius can handle the candlelight dinner. We'll put Remus as Prince Charming because he gets along with Lily the best, and I'll just give her the kiss-to-end-all-kisses!"

Jamie was so flabbergasted that she could barely think straight. _Divide up the work? _Who was insane enough to do something as ridiculous as that?

James was still talking, oblivious of Jamie's rising annoyance. "Technically, Remus is supposed to be the one kissing Lily since he's Prince Charming, but I think I'd be the better kisser and Lily will have a night that she'll never… Ow!" He cut off, mid-rant, a hand on his head where he had just been cruelly bashed. "Why the hell did you just hit me?"

"Because you were being stupid."

He was scandalized. "_What_?"

Jamie rolled her eyes. "How thick can you get? This isn't something you can accomplish with _teamwork_. Lily only wants _one _Prince Charming, not four!"

"But…"

"I want _you _to give all that to her."

James was so surprised that he jumped and smacked his head against the wall. "Damn," he muttered. His eyes were wide when he finally focused on her again. "_What _did you just say?"

Jamie smiled. "I said, I want you to be Lily's Prince Charming."

He looked startled. He glanced around furtively, and after noticing that they were the only ones in the corridor, he spun around and nearly crashed into the wall again. He was stumped. Jamie was really asking _him _to be Lily's _Prince Charming_?

"But…" he stuttered, still unable to fully grasp the idea. "You've always told me to stay away from her. You…"

Jamie blew out an exasperated sigh. "You were being a prat to her, James. Of course I told you to leave her alone."

He ran a hand through his hair. "Jamie, do you realize that I'm not exactly good boyfriend material?"

She raised her eyebrows. Was her brother actually being _humble_? She was slightly surprised that he wasn't jumping with glee at the prospect of taking Lily out on a date.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I won't make a good Prince Charming." James shifted his eyes. "Lily will be disappointed. I don't want to spoil something that she's wanted for so long."

Jamie rolled her eyes. "Oh please. I have good judgment, brother."

James lifted an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that?"

She smirked and playfully punched him on the shoulder. "I've always had the better brain and you know it. If I say you'll do fine, you'll do fine."

James snorted and rolled his eyes, but he suddenly seemed extremely pleased. Jamie had to admit that James' infatuation towards Lily was quite adorable. She had never seen him so pleased with anything other than Quidditch, and she suddenly found herself hoping that Lily would be more open-minded to James' advances after this.

"So when do I start?" he asked, bringing Jamie out of her thoughts.

"Tomorrow. Do you still remember everything she likes?"

He smirked. "Of course. Lily's my specialty."

She nodded. "Good. I expect to see some results."

"Consider it done." And then he suddenly wrapped his arms around her and squeezed. Jamie was so shocked that she was frozen. While she and James were close, they hardly _hugged _unless it was something as serious as the sky collapsing. The last time she had even held his hand was when he had fallen off his broom during a Quidditch match and remained unconscious for a week.

"Um…James?"

"I'm so happy," he murmured. He pulled away and smirked. "I always knew placing my sister by Lily's side was a good idea."

Jamie narrowed her eyes. "Oh you…"

"James and some girl, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G."

The siblings froze.

"First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage."

It was Sirius. Jamie felt her eyes twitch. She whirled around furiously and glared at the Marauder, who stopped mid-rhyme and gaped.

"Oh shit," he muttered.

"Yeah." She nodded, cracking her knuckles. "Oh shit is right."

"Padfoot?" James said.

Sirius glanced at his best mate. "Yeah?"

"Run."

And he did, with Jamie hot on his tail.

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**Author's Note: **Welcome to the beginning of my new short story :) It's five chapters long and is mostly all humor, just something fun for the summertime. Please review on your way out. Thank you! Next chapter will be up soon. See you then!

_xox **KRS**_


	2. The Candlelight Dinner

**Disclaimer: **All familiar characters belong to JK Rowling!

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**The Candlelight Dinner**

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_The many things we had and shared_

_The sunsets_

_The candlelight dinners_

_Our passion and love_

_-Gary R. Hess_

Lily couldn't help her skepticism as she eyed Jamie for the thousandth time that evening. What was her friend so anxious about? She was pacing around in their dorm room, poking her head out the door every once in a while, and then slamming it shut again when she realized no one was out there.

Lily caught a few muttered words under Jamie's breath that sounded oddly like 'late,' 'stupid,' and then, 'bloody James.'

"James?"

Jamie stopped her pacing and gave Lily a sheepish smile. Her hazel eyes were wide and innocent in appearance, but six years had taught Lily to look past that. The Potter girl was definitely hiding something, and it had to do with her brother.

"Just spit it out, Jamie," Lily said. "I can tell you want to tell me anyway."

Jamie scowled. "I wasn't _planning _on telling you at all, but the idiot's late!" She threw her hands into the air. "He didn't have to choose _today _to be tardy."

Lily lifted an eyebrow. "But he's always late. He's never been on time to any of our meetings."

Jamie huffed and crossed her arms, tapping her foot impatiently against the ground. "Well those are _required_. This is something he wants and he's _still_late."

Lily stared at her friend for another few seconds before she realized that Jamie wasn't going to say anything else unless the situation became dire enough. Finding that it was useless for her to pry, she decided that she might as well take a nap to pass the time before dinner started. She plopped down on her bed, and was just about to lie down when Jamie suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her up again.

"You can't sleep yet!" she cried, sounding frantic. "You can't mess up your hair."

Lily ran a hand through her hair and frowned. "Why not?"

Jamie was flustered. "Well…because…"

She leaned forward and raised both her eyebrows. "Yes?"

"It um…"

There was a knock on the door. Jamie squealed in excitement and practically flew to the door in her haste. Lily didn't bother looking. It was probably Marlene, coming back to grab a forgotten parchment or book. But she didn't understand why Jamie was so eager to get the door. Was she waiting for someone?

There were dim voices, and then suddenly, Jamie materialized right next to Lily and gave her a rather rude shove out the door. She collided with the person standing at the door, but he managed to steady her before she lost her footing.

"Evans, you all right?"

Lily bristled. She knew that voice.

"James, you klutz," Jamie reprimanded from behind and successfully pulled Lily back to a proper upright position. "Is that how you greet girls?"

James frowned indignantly. "But she came flying out at me first. It really isn't my fault."

Lily flushed furiously. "Well if you hadn't decided to stand in front of the door, we wouldn't even have this problem."

"But I have every reason to stand in front of the door," he replied. Lily opened her mouth to retort, but before she could say anything, James reached behind him and, with a flourish, produced a single rose.

A single _red _rose.

Lily didn't know whether to feel alarmed or disturbed. Fairytales had always indicated a redrose as the symbol for true love. And while the gesture was sweet, it just didn't feel right coming from James Potter. In fact, it was even a little disheartening.

Jamie clapped in delight. "Lily, it's a rose!"

Lily stared at it for a moment, frowned, and then grabbed it from James' hand. She chucked it right back at him.

James gaped.

"Hear me clearly, Potter," she snapped. "I'm not going to be swept off my feet by any gesture of yours, so consider this a fair warning. Stop trying."

He appeared flabbergasted for a moment, his eyes wide. Lily could hear her breaths coming in and out harshly, and she had to admit that the ranting felt pretty good. Sadly enough, James didn't seem to have comprehended her seriousness because he shook himself out of his shock and smiled.

"Now you don't truly mean that, Evans."

Her eye twitched. "Oh but I do."

"Nope, you don't, and since I believe in second chances…" His smile widened, and with a flourish akin to the previous one, produced another red rose, no less perfect and beautiful as the last. "Here. For you."

Jamie was prodding Lily on the back, urging her to take it. But Lily would have none of it. She snarled and threw it onto the ground this time, giving it an extra stomp to further prove her point.

James seemed a little hurt.

She looked at him in triumph. "Do you understand now, Potter? Leave." She pointed a finger down the staircase that had led him up there in the first place.

After such an extravagant gesture, she was sure that he'd turn tail and walk away. But sadly enough, he didn't seem to understand English anymore.

He let out a sigh. "Merlin knows I should be bloody mad by now, but since I believe in _third _chances…" He held before her, yet again, another beautifully bloomed red rose. Lily gritted her teeth so fiercely that she swore she felt a migraine coming on. Why couldn't he just understand that she wanted _nothing _to do with him?

"James Potter!"

He smiled hopefully. "Yes?"

"I believe I told you to _sod off_!" She gave him a rough push as she enunciated her last words, causing James to stumble and crash into the wall behind him.

He looked half-surprised, half-hurt. Lily turned to Jamie for support, but to her astonishment, her friend looked…indignant? Outraged? She was confused. Normally, even though James was her brother, Jamie had always supported her. But why was her reaction so different this time?

"Jamie?" Lily asked tentatively.

She huffed, and without another word, stormed back into their dorm and slammed the door shut. Lily blanched. What was that all about?

"Well, I guess it's just you and me now."

Lily's fists clenched and she closed her eyes, forcing herself to count to ten. If she didn't, she knew she would've blown up right then and there, and it didn't take a genius to know that it wouldn't have been a pretty sight.

So, when she finally did count to ten, she opened her eyes, fully expecting to see James' annoying face. Instead, she nearly choked from the strong fragrance that the bundle of roses produced. And yes, it was a _bouquet_!

She glared.

James shrugged hesitantly. "I thought you might like them."

"Remember how I treated those other three roses? Does it _look_ like I like them?"

He frowned faintly. "Well, Jamie was here, so I thought maybe you were just trying to give her the impression that you hate roses even though you don't."

Lily stared at him. She could hardly believe her ears. Only someone like James Potter would be arrogant enough to come up with such a lousy excuse in the face of rejection. She glared at him, and with narrowed eyes, grabbed the bundle out of his arms and flung it into the air.

"I hate roses!" she yelled in the downpour of flowers. "And I hate you too!"

James was first shocked, then hurt, and finally, angry. He crossed his arms in annoyance.

"Fine then, you bloody picky girl. See if I ever do anything for you again."

And with that, he stomped down the stairs. Lily was left with a shower of roses at her feet, and she kicked the nearest one for good measure.

"Oh yes," she started, in a mimic of James' voice, "you bloody picky girl. See if I _ever _do anything for you again." She threw her arms up in a little flurry of exasperation and then snorted at the sheer stupidity of his actions.

"Since when have you _ever _done anything good for me, Potter?" she shouted.

There was no reply.

Lily frowned, but then she mentally scolded herself for reacting to his silence. He was probably ducked in a corner, sulking in self-pity because he didn't get his way. It was just so _him_. She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall, mentally ticking off the seconds until he would barge back up.

Three minutes and twenty-four seconds passed.

Lily was starting to get a little worried. James wasn't one to just absorb insults. He should've been blowing up armchairs and tearing curtains by now, but he was as dormant as ever. Was there something wrong with him?

She tried to think of all the possibilities. Maybe he was so mad that he had fainted from anger? But try as she might, she couldn't imagine James fainting, unless a Bludger knocked him out during a Quidditch game.

Deciding that she ought to see if he was still alive or not, Lily slowly pulled away from the wall and crept down the stairs. There were only a few students in the common room, but she didn't pay any attention to them. Her sole focus was on James, whom she had just located, slouched against one of the tables near the windows. She blinked. So he was _still _sulking?

She stepped closer to him, her footsteps light and slow. She didn't want to startle him out of his woefulness if he wanted to wallow in self-pity. She was only there to make sure that he hadn't angered himself to death…if that was even possible.

Lily did a double take when she reached him. Were his shoulders _shaking_?

Was James Potter _crying _because he had been rejected?

_Crying_ of all things?

Lily could hardly believe it. She had rejected James more times than she had ever said hello to him, but he had never reacted negatively to any of her words. In fact, they had spurred him on even more.

"James?" she asked tentatively.

He let out a loud sniffle—a bit too loud in her opinion—and said in a sulky voice, "What do you want?"

She frowned. "I was just…"

"Come to gloat?" he muttered.

Lily blinked in surprise. "Of course not. Why would I?"

"Then what are you doing here?" He still hadn't lifted his head, but his voice sounded relatively normal, albeit a little wrangled.

"I…" She looked around for a suitable excuse, and when she didn't find one, she stuck to the truth. "I was just wondering if you were okay."

He shifted slightly, but he didn't lift his head out of his arms. "I'm okay. Of course I'm okay. Why wouldn't I be?"

Lily sighed, and for the first time in her life, felt a little guilty about treating James the way she had been. He had only asked her out one too many times. That was hardly a crime.

"I'm…I'm sorry…"

He froze, and his words came out hesitantly. "Really?"

Lily could feel her cheeks turning steadily red. "Yeah. I… _Yeep_!" She screeched as her feet suddenly left the ground, and she was set down rather unceremoniously on the nearby table with a light plop. She glared at James, her eyes wide and her breaths coming a bit too quickly for her liking.

James smirked at her expression. "Gotcha, Evans." He winked and smoothly slipped another rose behind her ear. Lily was slightly surprised. She didn't think he still had any after she had tossed the entire bouquet away.

His chuckle brought her back to reality, and she suddenly remembered why she was seated on the table. "You…you were never…"

James' chuckle bloomed into full-out laughter. His words were filled with mirth. "You have no idea how difficult it was to keep from laughing. I was biting my lip so hard that I swear it was going to bleed."

Lily entertained the thought of punching him.

"And then I had to make sure you didn't know I was actually laughing instead of crying, so I had to muffle my words." He continued talking, oblivious of Lily's growing rage. "You sounded so hesitant and so apologetic that I… Oh damn it!"

Lily had finally let her fist fly. It had almost collided with his jaw, but James had ducked just in time, and her fist punched the wall instead. She let out a small cry of pain and rubbed her knuckles.

James shook his head in disbelief. "I know you want me, Evans, but try to control yourself, will you?"

She gritted her teeth. "Why I ought to…"

"Kiss me?" he offered. His grin was vibrant and his hazel eyes glittered. Lily scowled. "Now, I know you'd love to get your hands on me, but we actually have somewhere to be." He paused, and then added, "But we can continue this later, if you'd like."

"I would sooner kiss a fish," Lily snapped.

James merely shrugged and lifted her off the table. He wrapped an arm around her waist and reached out and gently brushed the bangs out of her eyes. Lily was stiff during his ministrations, and when he finally leaned away from her again, she slowly let out the breath she hadn't known she was holding.

"I'd like you to know, Evans," he whispered, breath floating near her ear, "that I kiss infinitely better than a fish."

He smiled roguishly and guided her out of the portrait hole. The corridors were mostly empty, which indicated that it was dinnertime.

"Potter, where are we going?"

James grinned. "Now that is for me to know and not for you to find out."

Lily narrowed her eyes. "But I'm going to find out sooner or later. Why not tell me now?"

"Like I always say, better later than sooner." He looked pointedly ahead. She huffed in annoyance when she realized that he wasn't about to tell her anything anytime soon. He and Jamie were so similar in that aspect.

They passed the Great Hall, turned a few corners, walked up a few flights of stairs, and finally came to a stop in front of a wall. And it was a very unimpressive and bland-looking wall.

James was now eyeing it critically, as if he could decipher some mysterious carving on it. Lily was hardly impressed. Of all the places they could've ended up in, their destination just had to be in front of a _wall_. Had she given James' creativity too much credit?

She gestured with a hand. "So _this _is the thing that's for you to know and not for me to find out?"

He smirked triumphantly. "This is it."

She shook her head. "I'm going back to the common room."

James grabbed her arm before she could leave and promptly started an odd pacing towards the right. And then to the left. And then back to the right again. Lily was getting irritated.

"Potter," she snapped, after their third round. "I think I've had enough of your games."

James lifted an eyebrow. "Really?" He sounded amused. "Then you obviously haven't seen this yet." And with a sudden flourish, he pulled open the wall—get this, he _pulled open _the _wall_—and shoved her into the room.

Lily jerked to a halt. The room was dark, warm, and it smelled…queer. She felt James come in behind her and the door slammed shut.

James sniffed the air. "Lily…"

She glanced in the direction she thought his voice was coming from. "What?"

"Did you…did you just release some gas?"

Lily was so startled that she jumped, banged her head into something, and then crashed to the ground near two skinny…legs?

"Moo."

She blanched and slowly felt up the legs. Were they James' legs? But he wasn't reacting to her touch, which meant they probably weren't. Besides, the legs were too short to be James', considering his height. So what were those sticks then?

"Moo."

Lily let out a hesitant breath. "James?"

Some shuffling. "Yeah?"

"Are you making the…um…"

"Cow sounds?"

Lily nodded. "Yeah."

"No. I thought you were."

She snorted and rolled her eyes, even though he couldn't see her. "Why would I make cow sounds? I'm not a cow."

James sounded confused. "I realized that…but um…" He let out a muffled curse. "Um…Lily?"

It was her turn to snap. "What?"

"Why are you…that is to say…you uh…"

She was growing impatient, and she was still annoyed by the fact that she was half-blind. Her eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness in the room yet. "Spit it out, Potter."

"Why are you _touching _me?"

Lily jumped. "_What_?" She quickly withdrew her hands and rubbed them against her robes. So those legs _had _been James'? No wonder they were so hairy and nasty.

"I am _not _touching you!" she cried. "And why did you lock me in a broom cupboard in the first place?"

"I didn't!" he protested. "It's actually a…"

There was a sudden bright flare, and then the lights came on. "Surprise!"

Lily winced and shielded her eyes. James let out a string of curses beside her. There was shuffling, and then something was pressed into her hand. A goblet? She peeled open an eye and glanced at the thing in her hand. It was indeed a drinking utensil, only it was a wine glass instead of a goblet. She peered at it hesitantly. Was that _wine _swishing around in it?

There was a loud cough to her right and Lily looked up. Her jaw dropped.

"What in Merlin's name…"

Lily couldn't help her shock. She _must've _been dreaming.

James was cursing so colorfully beside her that she could barely understand half of what he was saying. "Padfoot!" he roared. "Moony! Wormtail!"

The three named ones suddenly scuttled out of what seemed to be an adjoining room, sporting wide grins on their faces. Lily stared. Sirius was in a goofy chef's outfit, complete with the white hat and the apron. Remus and Peter were both wearing tuxedos and waiter uniforms in a room full of…cows.

Cows. Yes, that was right. They were in a room _full _of cows.

What was going on?

"At your service, Mr. Potter and Mrs. Potter," Sirius said professionally, sweeping a bow.

It took Lily five seconds to collect her bearings, five more to collect her marbles, and finally two more to collect her wits. She finally yelled, "I am not _Mrs. Potter_!"

James seemed to have more pressing issues to deal with. He looked particularly red in the face. "Guys," he said, voice quivering with anger. "Why the hell are there _cows _in the room?"

Peter looked confused. "But didn't you tell us to put cows here?"

As if on cue, Sirius and Remus nodded.

James blanched. Lily fumed. Had he expected her to feel _touched _by the fact that he had bothered to gather all the cows in England and distribute them in this room? Did he think she would thank him for all the time and effort?

She rounded on him. "Potter…"

James held up his hands. "Wait, stop! This is all wrong!" He turned to his friends. "Since _when _did I tell you to put cowshere?"

Sirius frowned. "Yesterday. This morning too."

Lily glanced at James. He was positively shaking with anger, but miraculously enough, his voice was still level. "I never said that."

"Yes you did," Remus replied. "You told us to prepare you a cattle night dinner."

"A _what_?"

"Cattle night dinner," Sirius repeated, and then said thoughtfully, "It _is _a little strange, but hey, we can pull anything off." He gestured towards the cows in the room as if to make a point.

"And since cattle is basically a herd of cows, we decided to grab a few of every species," Peter added, sounding very proud of himself.

James' expression mirrored sheer incredulity. "I said," he managed to sputter, "I said _candlelight _dinner, not _cattle night _dinner!"

The Marauders gaped. Sirius looked shocked, Remus appeared abashed, and Peter just stared with his innocent round-eyed look.

"Well," Remus finally said, after a few seconds. "The two sound similar."

Lily bit back a snicker. When it came to the Marauders, it seemed as if _anything _was possible. James looked beyond aggravated now, and she worried briefly for his hair. At the rate he was going, he would probably end up with a bald spot.

Sirius surveyed the situation with ease. "Oh don't look so upset, Prongs," he said gallantly. "We can still fix it." And in a flash, he produced two candlesticks from thin air and held them out proudly for all to examine. "We have the candles, the cattle, the light, and the night."

Peter clapped.

James narrowed his eyes, but he seemed to realize the hopelessness of the situation. He sighed and gestured towards the sole table in the room, which was currently surrounded by the cows.

"Well, Evans…shall we?"

Lily blinked at him. "You mean…_here_?"

"Yes," he replied. "We do have the table and the food and the utensils."

"And the cows," she supplied helpfully.

James sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Those too."

Lily crossed her arms. "So let me get this straight. You wanted to prepare a candlelight dinner, but instead you ended up with a room full of cows?"

"That was his fault," Sirius cut in hurriedly, before James could say anything. "He didn't enunciate."

James' mouth fell open. "What do you mean _I _didn't…"

"Now, now," Remus said, interrupting him with a wave of his hand. "Stop arguing before you upset your stomachs." He gestured for Lily to follow as he cleared a path through the mooing mass.

She trailed behind him hesitantly, but her hesitance turned into partial delight as she stared in awe at the preparations on the table. At the center stood a delicate clear vase with a single rose in it. There were crystal goblets, fancy dishes, expensive utensils, and an expensive-looking tablecloth to complete the requirements for a romantic candlelight dinner. Sirius set his two conjured candlesticks on the table, one in front of Lily and the other in front of James.

"Mr. and Mrs. Potter," Peter said, as if rehearsed. "Your dinner awaits."

Lily opened her mouth to reiterate the fact that she was _not _Mrs. Potter, but Peter had left in such a hurry that she had no time to retort.

There was a moment of silence…or rather, a moment of silence on their part. The cows completely ignored the suddenly tense atmosphere and continued mooing and minding their own businesses.

"So," James finally said. He glanced at the menu in front of him. "Shall we order?"

Lily opened her mouth to reply, but she was shocked to silence when Remus suddenly materialized next to her. A cow had gotten a little too close to him so he shooed the animal away irritably. "Actually, we've already ordered for you."

James' eyebrows rose. "Oh?"

"I'm pretty sure you'll like the food," Remus said. "Padfoot can be an excellent cook…once in a while."

Lily's eyes widened. Sirius Black? _Cooking_?"Remus, wait!" But he was already gone.

She chose to glare at James instead. "So this is what you wanted me to see?"

He nodded slowly. "Yes. And don't look so traumatized. Padfoot is a pretty decent cook." He gestured at the table before them. "And you have to admit that this does look pretty professional." James leaned down slightly to examine the tablecloth. "I wonder where they got…"

Lily watched in amusement as one of the cows leaned forward and bit off a corner of the tablecloth. James looked twitchy. He eyed the animal with distaste, and from the gleam in his eyes, it looked as if he wanted to eat it for dinner instead of what Sirius was preparing.

"Now Potter," she said wisely, "be nice to the poor thing. It wouldn't… Yeow!" She jumped and found said 'poor thing' next to her, attempting to take a bite out of her robes. It had accidentally nipped her leg at the same time.

She snarled.

"Now Evans," James said sarcastically, "be nice to the _poor thing_. It wouldn't hurt you."

Lily narrowed her eyes. "Be quiet before I castrate you along with this…this _thing_." She seated herself again, cross-legged this time so that the cow had no access to her lower limbs.

"I would love to see you try." James smirked and drank a big gulp of his wine.

Lily sniffed her wine glass hesitantly. Wasn't she underage?

"Don't worry," James said, as if reading her troubled thoughts. "You won't get drunk off this. It's not even half as strong as firewhiskey."

She looked at him suspiciously. "You've tried firewhiskey?"

He lifted an eyebrow as if she were stupid. "Is that a real question or are you just trying to make small talk?"

Lily was indignant. "Of course it was a real question!" She leaned back and crossed her arms. "But I forgot who I was talking to. You probably make it a habit to break all the rules, don't you?"

"Rules or laws?" he asked with wide-eyed innocence.

Her jaw dropped. "You've…you've broken _laws_?"

"Just a couple," he said cheerfully.

Lily was rendered speechless for a brief moment. A part of her mind was insisting that she should've known that the Marauders had broken at least one law with all the trouble they got into on a daily basis. And yet it was still rather startling to hear James admit to it.

"Evans? Are you still there?"

She blinked. "Yeah."

James looked charmed. "Did I just freak you out?" When she didn't say anything, his grin widened till he was flashing all his pearly whites. "I did, didn't I?"

"It's just hard to imagine how you guys can get away with it."

"It's not that hard," he said off-handedly. "You just have to be efficient in hiding the evidence. And running from the scene."

The way James explained it reminded Lily of a Muggle criminal. She briefly wondered how the Marauders would do if they were placed in Muggle England. Would they be criminal masterminds?

She was interrupted from her thoughts when Peter appeared. He set down two bowls of soup in front of them. Lily eyed hers. It actually appeared rather tasty. She was about to eat when another dish was set in front of her. She lifted an eyebrow. Was that the main course?

"Your soup," he presented, "and your filet mignon."

Lily frowned at the meat, wondering which poor cow it came from.

James looked confused. "Why are the soup and the main course together?"

Peter grinned sheepishly. "The soup would've been ready a few minutes ago, but Padfoot and Moony got into an argument, so Padfoot forgot about it. The filet mignon was done before you guys got here, so you get to have both the soup and the main course at the same time."

Lily smiled reassuringly, ignoring James' look of utter exasperation. "It's all right, Peter. Thanks." She turned back to her plate…and gaped.

It was empty.

She quickly glanced over to see if James had stolen her share, only to find him cutting into his own filet mignon thoughtfully. He hadn't. Her bottom lip quivered. Where was her food?

"My food," Lily whimpered.

James looked up from his plate. "What?"

"Someone stole my food!" she cried.

He frowned. "I think that guy stole it." He directed his knife towards the left. Lily narrowed her eyes on the culprit, preparing to wrestle for the piece of meat. She stopped halfway when she saw a baby cow licking her dinner, taking a delicate bite once in a while. She softened. It was so cute!

She slowly sat back down and sighed wistfully. "I want my food."

James lifted an eyebrow. "Then take it from him." He nodded towards the innocent animal. "I'm pretty sure you can get it back."

Lily pursed her lips. "It could be a _she _you know. No need to be discriminatory."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine then. Take it from _her_."

"But I think it deserves to eat it." She paused for dramatic effect. "But you don't." And suddenly, she lunged towards his plate and grabbed the filet mignon barbarically with her bare hands. She smirked at James' shocked expression and promptly shoved the entire piece into her mouth.

"Did you just…did you just shove that _entire _piece of meat into your mouth?" James asked incredulously.

Lily nodded, smiling as widely as possible. It ended up slightly distorted due to the large amount of food in her mouth.

James jumped out of his seat, shaking his head all the while. "I can't believe…you're such a…" He pointed his knife at her, his eyes huge. "You're such a _pig_!" He swung his arm out in exasperation, but at that moment, his grip on the knife loosened.

Lily barely had enough time to realize that a knife was flying right at her before she shrieked and toppled out of her seat. The knife nailed itself into the back of the chair, where her chest had been only two seconds ago. She struggled back to her feet, only to see James frozen in shock, his hand still poised in the air.

Lily could barely choke out her words. "You just…you just threw a _knife _at me."

His mouth moved, but no words came out.

"YOU JUST THREW A _KNIFE _AT ME, YOU PRAT!" she shrieked.

James finally found enough air to form words. "I…I…"

"You. Just. Threw. A. Knife. At. Me."

He looked horrified. "Evans, I…"

"I _hate _you, James Potter!"

* * *

**Author's Note: **Here's the first chapter! :) Hope you laughed at least once throughout it or else I'll consider myself a complete failure at writing humor. Next chapter is titled "Stroll Under the Moonlight." Maybe it'll give you a hint as to what it's about!

_xox **KRS**_


	3. Stroll Under the Moonlight

**Disclaimer: **All familiar characters belong to JK Rowling!

* * *

**Stroll Under the Moonlight**

* * *

_Dancing in the moonlight  
Everybody's feeling warm and bright  
It's such a fine and natural sight  
Everybody's dancing in the moonlight_

_-Rick Monroe, "Dancing in the Moonlight"_

It was half past ten when Lily heard a knock on the door. She was still in the middle of telling Jamie about her horrible experience with said girl's brother, even though the incident had occurred a week ago and she had already related the tale to Jamie at least twenty times already.

She stopped, mid-sentence, and scowled at the door. "I was just getting to the worst part."

Jamie sighed sympathetically. "It's all right, Lily. I'll go get it."

She hopped off the bed and opened the door, only to let out a sharp squeal of surprise. Lily angled her head so that she could peer at the door, but from where she was sitting, she couldn't see whom Jamie was talking to. Whoever it was though, Jamie didn't seem very pleased to see him.

"Now's not the time," she hissed.

The guy on the other side of the door muttered something that caused Jamie to let out a breath of annoyance.

"You've already screwed it up once. She's not going to go with you this time… No, I don't care how long you spent preparing this. I doubt you'll get a second chance."

Lily frowned. From Jamie's tone, the situation sounded serious. What could they possible be arguing about?

Jamie stomped her foot loudly. "You can't possibly think she'll give you another chance? Merlin, James, don't be stupid!"

Lily's eyes narrowed when she finally realized whom Jamie was talking to. How _dare_James Potter knock on her door again, especially after he threw a knife at her! It was one thing to lead her into a room full of cows and expect to have a candlelight dinner in the midst of it, but taking a shot at her life was just a little too over the top.

"James… James, no! Stop!" But it was too late. Lily watched with growing irritation as James slammed open the door and pushed past Jamie into the room. He stopped short when he saw her sitting on the bed, arms crossed and expression murderous.

Jamie rushed to her side and placed a placating hand on her arm. "Lily, don't do anything rash. He's leaving."

"No I'm not," James corrected firmly. "I'm taking her out on our second date."

Jamie's nostrils flared. "James, turn tail and head back out."

"It really wasn't my fault!" he protested. His eyes landed on Lily, who was still glaring at him through narrowed eyes. "Evans, believe me. I really didn't mean to throw that knife at you. It was a complete accident! I would never…"

Lily scoffed loudly. "I'm sure it was, Potter. Now get out of my room before I murder you."

But he wouldn't move. "Evans, please. This date will be better. We'll be out on the grounds and I promise I won't carry any sharp weapons around."

"Too late, Potter."

"Evans…"

"No."

James turned to Jamie. "Persuade her for me?"

She shook her head. "Sorry, I've already tried and I've given up now."

He sighed and then cleared his throat. Lily was shocked when his wand suddenly materialized into his hand, and another second later, she found herself stiff as a board and completely mute. Jamie was yelling her head off at her brother, but he petrified her as well and caught her before she fell to the ground. He laid Jamie on her bed gently, and ignoring the glare he received from his sister, moved to Lily's side and tried not to wince at the state of murder within her eyes.

"Sorry I had to do this, but you wouldn't have come with me willingly."

Lily's glare intensified.

James gulped. "But I promise this is going to be better. Really." He attempted a half-smile and picked her up, hooking an arm under her legs and using his other arm to support her back. "Just try not to kill me before we get there, okay?"

Since Lily couldn't say anything, she tried to glare a hole into his head while he whisked her out of her room and down the stairs. Gryffindors stopped to stare as they witnessed the sight, but James ignored them and headed out the portrait hole and down the corridor. Lily tried to get a good idea of where they were going with each passing corridor, but it was only when they reached the Entrance Hall did she remember that he had mentioned something about the grounds.

She couldn't contain her anxiety. Spending time with James and the Marauders in a room in Hogwarts was one thing, but being outside under open sky was another thing. The Marauders' alarming lack of attention towards rules gave her reason to believe that whatever they were doing tonight probably didn't agree with the rulebook.

She was relieved when they stopped in front of the beech tree that the Marauders had practically claimed as theirs. She didn't know what she would do if James had wanted to take her into the Forbidden Forest.

He set her down carefully, his eyes following her expression. "I'm going to let you go, but can you please not run? I don't really fancy the idea of chasing after you, especially not when there's so much to do."

Lily just stared.

He sighed and muttered, "_Priori Incantatem_."

Lily remained unmoving. James looked at her curiously, and at that moment, she swung her arm and punched him squarely in the jaw.

"Bloody hell!" he shouted, cupping his jaw with a hand. "What the hell is your problem, Evans?"

She raised an eyebrow. "You can't exactly say that was undeserved, you know. After what you did to me last time and what you did just now, did you really expect me to thank you?"

"Well you certainly didn't have to punch me," he said sulkily. "I was only trying to…"

"Make my life miserable?" Lily cut in.

He scowled childishly. "No! I was…" He shook his head then, as if finding the situation utterly hopeless. "Never mind. Let's just continue with the plans."

Lily blinked. "What plans?"

"Well see, since I figured you've never really appreciated the grounds at night before, I decided to take you out and…well…appreciate the grounds. At night."

"So we're just going to stand out here and…appreciate the grounds?" she said skeptically.

James nodded.

She snorted. "That sounds absolutely thrilling."

He grinned in the wake of her sarcasm and grabbed her hand. Lily tried to pull away from him, but his grip was simply too strong and too firm, and so she resigned to letting her hand rest in his for a short while. And when he wasn't paying attention, she would turn and run back up to the castle.

It was as if he read her thoughts, because when he turned to look at her, his gaze was as serious as she had ever seen it. "Evans, I want you to have a fun time. So for my sake, can you please not run away?"

Lily swallowed. She couldn't help it, but at that moment, she wished that James would always be this serious. He was much more mature when he wasn't busy pulling pranks and laughing at others' expenses. Dare she say it, but he was acting like an adult.

And then he grinned, and the mirage was wiped away. "Well? What do you say, Evans?"

"Do I really have a choice?"

"Well," he said slowly, "you could ignore my request and go back up to the castle, but then you'd feel bad because I've got a really wonderful evening planned. So no, I guess you don't have a choice."

Lily glared at him in her agitated way and brushed past him, walking forward at a faster speed than she normally would've. There was a brief pause where she heard nothing but her own footsteps, and then James swiftly caught up with her.

He sounded amused when he spoke. "Do you even know where you're going?"

"Aren't we just walking?"

"Yes, but there's a designated path I want you to take." James took her hand and led her towards the right, where there was a road that seemed newly cleared out. He gestured towards the freshly mowed grass. "Do you like it?"

Lily assessed the ground. "I…guess?" She honestly couldn't express an extreme like or dislike towards freshly cut grass. It was just…grass…

James, however, didn't seem fazed by her lack of enthusiasm. "That's great!" he exclaimed, and then he proceeded to walk forward, his hand still tightly clasped around hers. She found it slightly annoying, considering it was a rather intimate gesture, but since James seemed to have a set destination in mind, she decided not to comment on something comparably trivial.

And she was right in her decision.

It was because she wasn't focused on their present hand-locked situation that she was able to realize that as they walked, flowers bloomed around them, as if trailing their steps. Roses, violets, daisies, lilies, petunias…all the flowers that she could possibly name grew around them, and she couldn't help but be awed at the sight. Oddly enough, she felt like a princess.

She glanced at James and saw that his smile had widened upon seeing her reaction. "Do you like it?" he asked, though the tone of his voice already told her that he knew the answer to his question.

Still, she couldn't help but nod. It _was_a wonderful sight.

The path of flowers led to a solitary bench made out of stone. Lily grinned when she realized the bench was fashioned after the ancient Greek and Roman seats with the intricate carvings and detailed decorations. She didn't doubt that this was credited to Remus' frequent visits to the library.

James gestured for her to sit, and she did, making sure that she sat with just the right amount of space behind her so that she wouldn't topple over. He slid down smoothly next to her and blew out a rather happy-sounding sigh.

Lily looked at him. "Why the sigh?"

"Hmm?" His smile looked a tad dreamy. "Oh nothing. It's just quite wonderful to be able to come out here and spend time with you."

She scoffed and tilted her head to look at the sky, observing the dark rolling clouds. Was it going to rain?

James was mildly affronted by her obvious dismissal. "Really, Lily." He had turned around to look at her fully, and even in the semi-darkness, she could see that his eyes were glowing. "I've always wanted to come out here with you. But you're always in the dorms and you would've never come out with me if…"

"If you hadn't forced me to come."

His head dipped towards the ground. "I guess…" His eyes brightened when he looked at her again. "But you won't regret this. See, nothing dangerous has happened yet."

Lily blinked, her brows furrowed slightly. "Dangerous? Is something dangerous supposed to happen?"

"Of course not!" he protested. "Everything will be perfect this time!"

She couldn't keep the amusement out of her voice. "All right then, Mr. Perfect. What are we supposed to be doing now?"

"Admiring the moon," James replied with a dramatic sweep of his arm. He gestured towards the sky, where the moon was shining brightly. It wasn't a full moon, but Lily could tell that it was getting relatively close. "See how round it looks?"

"It's not at it's fullest," she replied thoughtfully.

James seemed to dull at the word 'fullest.' Lily looked at him curiously, but he quickly hid the sudden drain of enthusiasm with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "No, it's not full moon, but it's round enough."

Lily tipped her head in faint confusion. She recognized avoidance when she heard it, but for some reason, James had never seemed like a person who would purposefully avoid a topic. He always seemed so open.

"Is something wrong?"

He jumped, as if he hadn't been expecting a question from her. "What?"

"Is something the matter? You seem awfully jumpy suddenly."

He laughed, though it sounded shaky. "Nope, nothing's the matter. Why would you say that?" And before Lily could say anything else, he pointed at the sky again. "The moon is really bright tonight. I can't even see any stars."

Seeing as James _really_didn't want to talk about anything regarding the full moon or explain why he reacted so strongly to it, she let the topic drop and decided to focus on the moon. And really, like he said, it was a beautiful moon, with gray spots in the right places that suggested there were craters on it.

It was during this lull in chatter that Lily began wondering why James suddenly seemed so adamant about taking her out on dates and why Jamie was suddenly so supportive of it. While James was her brother, Jamie had always stood on Lily's side, until that date with the cows. Since then, she had been alarmingly supportive of James and he always looked as if there was a specific mission that he had to fulfill. This change of attitude was certainly intriguing, if not confusing.

By then, Lily was beginning to feel a tad chilly from the wind and she glanced at James to see if he was getting cold as well, but he was busily looking at his pocket watch. It looked as if he was carefully monitoring the time.

She decided to speak up when another particularly violent chill ripped through her. "Um…Potter? This has been great and all, but I think I'm going to go in now." She made to stand, but was practically shoved back down by a rather harried-looking James.

He shook his head violently. "No, no, you can't leave yet."

Lily glared. "Why not? I'm freezing."

"Because it's not time yet!" he protested.

"What?"

James sounded exasperated when he spoke. "It's been dutifully recorded that when two people are on some kind of a romantic journey under the moonlight, they have to spend at least half an hour gazing at the moon."

Lily's eyes widened in disbelief. She looked at James as if he were insane. "And where exactly did you get this information?"

"From Sirius' handbook." When she only raised an eyebrow, he said, "Sirius compiled an entire handbook on what different types of girls like and what guys should do under different circumstances."

She could barely believe what she was hearing. "So we have to sit here for how many more minutes?"

He grinned. "Ten. Don't look so sad, Evans. You've always enjoyed following the rules anyway. I don't see why this is any different."

"The rules I follow actually make sense," Lily retorted. "I don't think Sirius' rules should be counted as rules in the first place."

James snorted, as if he was amused by what she had just said. "Not all the rules make sense. What about the ever popular 'no using magic in the halls'? We're witches and wizards. We're entitled to use magic."

"That's only because the professors don't want any trouble and they want to keep the students safe."

He scoffed, as if that was the stupidest thing he had heard in his life. He leaned back, using his arms to support his weight. "That's just ridiculous. What if dear old Voldemort himself were standing in the hallway? Should we still be good little boys and girls and keep our wands tucked safely in our robes?"

Lily rolled her eyes. Trust James to exaggerate everything. And really, it didn't take a genius to know that he was just finding a reason to break the rules. It was what he and his friends lived for after all.

"I refuse to listen to you anymore. You're just making up excuses." She ignored his protests and started moving back towards the castle.

James ran after her. With his quick strides, it didn't take long for him to catch up to her. He grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him. "Evans, don't break the rules. This really isn't like you. And…" He stopped talking suddenly and Lily turned around to see him staring up at the sky, his eyes widened in horror. She followed his gaze and watched as the moon slowly disappeared behind the dark clouds.

James transferred his gaze to her. "You…you…" His accusatory finger was shaking. "I told you to sit for another ten minutes but you just wouldn't _listen_to me! Now look what you did."

Lily couldn't hide her amusement. "What _I_did?" She rolled her eyes. "Oh please, Potter, get a grip on yourself. I'd like to think you're old enough to realize that clouds have a tendency to cover up the moon, especially when there are a lot of clouds."

He was looking extremely huffy. "That's your excuse. You just want to pretend that this has nothing to do with you."

"Well…"

James shook his head, cutting her off. "No, stop making excuses." He glanced around, and to Lily's surprise, took out his wand and muttered something under his breath. A bright streak shot into the air and erupted in a flare of light.

At Lily's look of surprise, he smirked. "I told you I would have things covered."

She blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Come with me." Without asking, he grabbed her arm and started pulling her in the direction of the Forbidden Forest. "I'm going to show you something."

She tensed upon realizing what he intended to do and pulled them to a stop. James glanced back at her and frowned. "What?"

"You're not seriously considering going in there."

"Of course I am." Then he looked at her as if she were crazy. "Are you telling me that you've never been in the Forbidden Forest before?" The look on her face must've told him her answer because his eyes widened. "Wow, Evans. Just what have you been doing these past few years?"

Lily scowled. "I've been doing what other students have been doing. Being a good student!"

"Well since this is your last year, you might as well do something insane." And then James started running, and in fear of falling, Lily couldn't help but run with him, deeper and deeper into the forest.

She began feeling rather ominous as they approached the darker and less-treaded parts of the forest. The only times they had ever really spent time in there was during Care of Magical Creatures lessons, and even then, they had only breached the shallower parts of the forest.

"Potter, you know we're entering dangerous territory right?"

His smile was bright, as usual. He ignored her steady protests and continued walking. It was pretty much pitch black, and without the steady light from their wands, Lily was sure that she would've tripped over dozens of tree roots already.

James turned towards the right and onto a path that seemed unlike all the others. This one looked as if someone had come and cleared away any potholes or tree roots so that it was smooth and hindrance-free. And with the sure way that James was walking, Lily had no doubt that this was probably the Marauders' doing.

She had lost count of how long they had walked, but James finally stopped in front of a rather crooked-looking tree. It seemed to be taller than any of the other trees in the forest, but other than that, it was rather bland-looking. That is, until James pointed his wand at the tree and whispered a spell.

The tree flared up with light. To Lily, it looked like an extra large version of a Christmas tree. There were dozens of multiple-colored lights covering it, from the trunk all the way up to the branches, where the leaves muffled the brightness of the sparkling lights. As she looked, she saw a glowing sphere-like object near the top of the tree, but before she could make out what it was, James was tugging her forward again.

He stopped at the base of the tree. There was a whoosh of air and then Sirius dropped down right next to her, his grin positively dazzling.

"Evans!" he greeted, smothering her in a hug. She choked and managed to detach herself from his stifling hold. "So how is my fair damsel doing on this fine night?"

She smiled at him wryly. "Great. Just great."

Sirius' face seemed to fall. "You don't like our spectacular creation?" He gestured towards the tree again, and that was when Lily noticed that the mysterious sphere-like object was descending towards the ground, not unlike a Muggle elevator. Her shocked expression must've been good enough for Sirius because he chuckled.

"Now that's better," he said.

Lily turned to look at him, and then at James, who was grinning a very bright grin. Then again, it seemed as if he had had a smile permanently etched onto his face ever since he had brought her out onto the grounds. Was he that pleased that she was enjoying it?

When the sphere-like object finally reached the ground, Lily saw that it was a carriage-type thing, only it looked more like an enlarged orange. There was a glittering door, which James held open and gestured for Lily go ahead. Plushy seats aligned the entire interior of the carriage-like object and Lily discovered that the carriage had clear walls. James took a seat opposite of her and Sirius closed the door with a resounding click.

"Enjoy yourselves, lovebirds!" he called, and with a wink and a flick of his wand, the carriage rose into the air again.

Lily's awe could hardly be contained. She was looking all around her, at the steadily dwarfing trees and the gradual ascent towards the sky. It was something that she had never dreamed of experiencing before.

"So…do you like it?" James asked, breaking the silence that had developed between them as Lily observed their surroundings.

"Of course I like it," she said, still in awe. "But how did you…"

He leaned forward so that their hands were almost touching, given the limited space. "This was originally just supposed to be a walk under the moonlight, but Remus said there were too many clouds to guarantee a good view of the moon." He gave her a crooked grin. "So then Sirius came up with the idea of incorporating the whole riding-in-a-carriage experience, except we didn't have horses at our disposal so we decided to alter the traditional process a little."

Lily's eyes widened. "Just how long did it take you guys to come up with this?"

"Not too long." James shrugged. "Jamie only gave us a day so…" He suddenly clamped his mouth shut, his eyes wide as he realized what he was about to say.

Lily leaned forward. "What?" she asked suspiciously. "Jamie only gave you a day? What does that mean?"

He shook his head with a grimace. "Nothing. Nothing at all. Forget I said anything."

She reached out and grabbed his hand before he could pull away. "No, I definitely won't forget what you said. What do you mean? What does Jamie have to do with anything?"

"Nothing!" he protested, a little louder this time. "She has nothing to do with anything! Just forget about it, all right?"

Lily scowled and crossed her arms. "Don't think I won't figure this out, Potter. And when I do, you'll be sorry."

James made a face and turned to look at the scenery around them. It was only then that Lily realized the carriage had stopped. She leaned over the sparkling door and gasped when she saw that they were now overlooking the entire forest. The sky felt so much closer from her vantage and she let out a little giggle of giddiness. She had never been up so high before, except for when she was on the Astronomy Tower. But this was an entirely different experience. Since the walls of the carriage were clear, it felt as if she was floating on thin air.

"James," she breathed, forgetting for a second that she was still a little mad at him. "This is…this is unbelievable."

James was a tad startled that she had used his first name, but he got over it quickly and shifted closer to her. "I'm glad you like it."

She glanced at him, her smile widening. "I love it."

His grin was impossibly wide. He looked so pleased that she was enjoying herself that Lily felt her spirits soar. She wanted to leap out of the carriage and enjoy the air…

There was a sharp whoosh and then a clang.

Lily froze.

She slowly turned around and came face-to-face with an arrow…an arrow that had missed her head by mere centimeters. It was now pinned to the side of the carriage, its body still quivering with the force that had been used to get it there.

James cursed under his breath and quickly shouted, "Duck!"

Lily threw herself flat against the ground without another thought and watched as several arrows impaled themselves onto the carriage. "What the hell is going on?" she shouted.

There was more shouting from the ground as the arrows flew. She yelped as one landed dangerously close to her side and shifted just in time for another arrow to join the first. What in Merlin's world was happening?

"Centaurs!" James replied. He whipped out his wand and shouted, "_Protego_!"

A clear shield enveloped the carriage, and James nodded with satisfaction when the arrows fell to the ground, useless, as they hit the barrier.

Lily jumped to her feet. "You're kidding me," she spat furiously. "You didn't realize that the centaurs would be angry at our trespassing?"

"We didn't think they'd notice!" he protested.

"You didn't think they would _notice_?" She jabbed a finger at his chest. "Tell me, Potter, who _wouldn't_notice a giant glowing ball this high up in the air? And after you sent that bright flash…"

James seemed at a loss for words. "Well we just…we didn't think…" He trailed off. "And that bright flare was to let Sirius, Remus, and Peter know that we were moving onto the second plan."

Lily glared at him. "Why don't you ever think?"

She screamed when the carriage suddenly rocked, tipping her off balance.

The barrier had shattered.

The centaurs did have a bit of magic after all. James threw himself against the cushions to avoid the arrows that had come pelting through. A centaur, probably the leader, was shouting out orders, and Lily had no doubt that those orders were something along the lines of 'kill the humans.'

Taking advantage of the brief lull in the attack, James leapt up and blasted open the other side of the carriage that was facing away from the centaurs, the side that originally had no door. He pulled Lily up and then hurriedly shoved her to the side as another arrow whizzed past them.

Lily glared at him. "What are you trying to pull?" she shouted.

"We have to jump!"

"What?"

And without warning, James grabbed her arm and jumped off the carriage. Without any light from James' wand, Lily had no idea whether or not they would hit any trees as they fell. However, since there were no more arrows pursuing them, the centaurs probably thought they were still in the carriage.

At the last minute before they collided with the ground, James muttered the levitation spell that allowed them to safely land. He changed his grip on Lily and started pulling them at a run towards the castle. However, they had only taken a few steps when Lily heard the thundering hooves.

She whirled around and shrieked when she nearly crashed face-first into a dangerously sharp arrow. James pulled her back and glared at the centaurs. They were surrounded.

The leader let out a disdainful sniff and pulled his bow even tauter. "Humans, you have trespassed onto our grounds."

James grimaced. "Yes, we know, but this was for a special occasion. It won't happen again!"

"Do not try my patience," the centaur growled. The nearby centaurs' hooves hit the ground impatiently. "Either we kill you or we take this to Dumbledore."

Lily's eyes widened at the thought of Dumbledore knowing that she had broken about fifty school rules in one night. She had a perfect record ever since First Year. She couldn't have her record marred, not when there were only a few months to go before graduation.

James automatically shook his head. "No, don't contact Dumbledore."

"Well then you must die."

James raised both hands when all the bows came up. "Wait, wait, stop! Can't you please let us go just this once? It was our first offense and…"

Before he could continue, there was a sudden bright flare from within the forest, followed by a loud cacophony of sharp screeches and loud whacking. The centaurs let out cries of alarm, and with their leader's assent, charged back into the forest.

The leader remained, eyeing James as if he were a piece of rotten meat. "I am hesitant about letting you leave, humans."

James looked rather humbled. "Please accept our sincerest apologies."

The centaur glared at James and Lily again before he said, "As it is, you are both young. Call this a fair warning. You got lucky this time." And without another word, he charged back into the forest in the direction the other centaurs had gone.

James released a breath of relief when the centaur left and gestured for Lily to walk with him back to the castle. She frowned. "What happened back in the forest?"

"Probably Sirius, Remus, and Peter. They created a diversion."

She blinked. "You mean they're still in there?"

"Probably."

"And you aren't worried?"

He looked at her wryly, his smile only half as bright as it usually was. "I doubt they'll get caught. We know quite a few escape tactics."

They fell silent. Lily was still pondering a question that had been bothering her for quite a while. Back when the centaur had given James a choice of living or informing Dumbledore, why had he been so adamant about not going to Dumbledore? Was he actually worried that he would get another detention? Was he worried about his Heads badge?

When she actually voiced this question out loud, James shook his head. "Of course I wasn't worried about any of that." He smiled faintly. "If he did tell Dumbledore, you would get in trouble. And I know you wouldn't want your record marred."

Lily blinked, suddenly speechless. He had been thinking about _her_when he rejected the idea?

James stopped walking and frowned at her, concerned. "Evans? Are you okay?"

She nodded slowly. It was hard to believe that James had been thinking about her instead of his own life. There was the chance that they both could have been shot, but instead, he had ignored that…

She looked at James again. Just what kind of person was he? It seemed to her that there were so many different aspects of his personality. But exactly who was James Potter?

"Evans? Evans, are you there?"

Lily finally turned her attention to him and saw his breath hitch. "Oh Merlin… Look, I can explain, all right? It really wasn't…"

Her eyes widened in shock. Was he actually going to explain why he had so many different personalities? "Oh no." Lily shook her head wildly. "Please don't explain. It's okay. I'm fine. I really don't need to know."

James' brows furrowed. "You mean you…"

She smiled a shaky smile and took one step back, and then another. "I'm just going to be more confused if you do. So no, it's okay. Um…I'm just going to go now. See you tomorrow!"

And then she ran off, leaving a very confused and shocked James behind.

* * *

**Author's Note: **This chapter isn't as humorous as the previous one, but I thought it was kind of romantic... in an entirely messed up way, of course :) Poor James. Nothing ever goes right when he's trying to be romantic for Lily. Well, hope you guys enjoy it either way! Next chapter is titled: "The Kiss to End All Kisses."

_xox **KRS**_


	4. The Kiss to End All Kisses

**Disclaimer: **All familiar characters belong to JK Rowling!

* * *

**The Kiss To End All Kisses**

* * *

I'm dreaming of one kiss from you

_A love long and true_

_We'll go on and on, yeah_

_-Britney Spears, "One Kiss From You"_

"Um… Potter?"

He took a step forward.

"Potter… exactly what are you doing?"

He didn't seem to hear her and took another step forward.

"I'm going to do something drastic if you come any closer. I swear."

He was practically two feet away from her.

"You're kind of in my personal bubble, you know. Just kind of."

He was only a foot away now.

"Okay now you're _really _in my bubble. I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to… Eek!"

Lily shrieked and jumped as James pitched forward and placed his hands on the desk behind her, effectively blocking any means of escape. "Just what do you think you're doing, Potter?"

"Shh," he whispered. He was impossibly close to her now. "Don't say anything."

"How can I not say anything?" Lily asked desperately. She shoved against him, but like a brick wall, he didn't budge. He just stared at her, eyes impossibly wide. "Potter, we have to go to our next class and I don't want to be late!"

James leaned in a little closer. Lily squirmed. He was so close that she could practically feel his breath grazing her cheek. She didn't know if it was just her, but there was something seriously wrong about the position they were in at the moment.

"Potter?"

"Stop talking, Evans. You're making me lose my concentration."

Her eyes bulged. "Concentration for what?"

He inhaled sharply and tipped his head so that his lips were level with hers. Lily tensed, and on impulse, closed her eyes. Was he actually going to do what she _thought _he was going to do? Was he… was he going to…

And then he abruptly pulled away. Lily opened her eyes, feeling a little confused by his abrupt change of action. Not that she had _wanted _him to kiss her, she reminded herself.

James looked distraught. "I… I…" He ran his hand through his hair agitatedly, making it even messier than it already had been. "I'm… I just, you know."

Lily frowned, finally regaining some of her senses. "No I don't know. What were you trying to pull?"

His eyes widened. "Nothing!" he said, shaking his head furiously. "Nothing at all. I just… you know… you had something that I just… uh…" He looked around, his breathing abnormally fast. Lily nearly did a double take. Was James Potter _nervous_?

"What?"

He gulped and tugged at his hair. "Nothing. I… I have to go!" And then he grabbed his bag and charged out of the classroom, letting the door slam shut behind him.

Lily stared at the door for the longest time after he left. What had that been about? Was this a third personality of his that she didn't know about? She shook her head, frustrated. Exactly how many different personalities could one person have?

* * *

Jamie was just coming out of the library when the force of a ton of stone rammed into her, knocking her to the ground and sending the books in her hand flying. She let out a loud groan as her butt came in contact with the hard ground and she heard a simultaneous moan to her left.

There was a brief period of silence as both Jamie and the culprit registered each other's presence. Her eyes widened. "James?"

He grimaced and pulled himself to his feet. Jamie watched her brother dust his robes off and then he held out a hand to pull her up. "Sorry about that," he said apologetically, bending down to retrieve her fallen books. "I was in a bit of a hurry."

"Yes I could see that," she said dryly. "You bowled me right over."

He smiled sheepishly and handed the books to her. "You need to eat less then." At her confused look, he said, "That way, when I do bowl you right over, I can just keep going. You're too big of a blockade."

Jamie's mouth dropped open. "Are you calling me fat?"

James' face was guileless. "Of course not. How could I ever call my darling sister fat?" At her look of outrage, he smiled and patted her head. "There, there now. Off to class you go."

She scowled. "We have the next class together, you know. Or did you forget about Transfiguration?"

"Yeah, um, about that…" He rubbed the back of his neck, looking oddly uncomfortable. "I don't think I'm going to go today. Give McGonagall a viable excuse for me, okay?"

Jamie's scowl dipped into a frown and she placed a concerned hand to James' forehead. It was normal temperature. She eyed him critically to see if there were any visible signs of stress or illness, and when she found none, her eyebrows rose.

"So you're going to cut class for the hell of it?"

He shrugged. "Yeah."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't lie to me, James. As rowdy as the lot of you get, I know you would never skip class because you feel like being rebellious. So what's bothering you?"

James remained quiet. For a while, Jamie was so sure that he wouldn't tell her anything, until he finally blew out a sigh. He looked troubled. "Lily, of course."

Ah, yes. How could Jamie have forgotten? James had already completed the first two 'wishes' of the whole Prince Charming idea, and the only one left was the so-called 'Best Kiss of Lily's Life'. Truthfully, she had thought that this was the easiest part of the three. There were countless times when she had overheard other girls talking about how great of a kisser James was, and every time she had heard, she had wanted to puke her head off in the stalls.

She tilted her head, highly amused. "What about Lily?"

He seemed extremely flustered. "I just…" He shuffled and ran a hand through his hair. "I can't… I just can't seem to… you know."

"Can't seem to what?"

"Kiss her," he mumbled.

Jamie was shocked to say the least. Had her ears deceived her? "What do you mean you can't kiss her? You couldn't find her lips or something?"

James scowled and flashed her a look of irritation. "No, of course not! I don't know why I can't. I just… she looked so shocked and confused and I didn't want to force her into it."

"Wait, wait, let me get this straight." Jamie paused as her brother looked at her earnestly. "You, James Potter, Hogwarts' kisser extraordinaire, can't kiss the love of your life?"

He huffed. "I'm leaving."

She hurriedly grabbed his arm before he could go anywhere and turned him back around to face her. She had to admit that this was probably the first time she had ever seen her brother so lost when it came to the opposite sex. Girls were supposed to be his specialty.

"I was joking, James. Stop being so sensitive."

He wrenched his arm away from her hold. "Does this look like a time to joke?" he asked loudly. "I'm in the middle of a bloody mid-life crisis and you're standing here laughing your arse off!"

If she wasn't laughing before then she definitely was laughing now. It was just so priceless to see James so bothered over something… especially a _girl_.

"I can't believe… you just said… mid-life… ha ha ha!" Jamie had grabbed her stomach and was practically rolling around on the floor now, her guffaws incessant.

James looked like he wanted to do something extreme, but before he could formulate an appropriate response, Sirius suddenly appeared on his left. His eyes were wide with genuine excitement. "Hey Prongs!" He eyed Jamie, who was still cackling on the floor. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," he muttered darkly. When Jamie only laughed harder, he gave Sirius a push. "Will you please shut her up for me? I'm getting a bloody headache."

Sirius' eyes sparked at the request and his grin was so wide that both his rows of sparkling white teeth were showing. "Gladly!" He bent down and pulled Jamie up with ease so that she was standing instead of rolling around on the ground. Her guffaws had dimmed a little, but once she saw James' face, another round started… until she was suddenly cut off.

There was a ringing silence in her ears.

James' jaw had practically hit the ground in his state of surprise, and even Jamie herself probably would've gaped… if she could. Instead, her mouth was rather preoccupied by a certain someone else's mouth, and it wasn't until a full five seconds later that she realized what was happening.

Sirius was _kissing _her.

And then she abruptly shoved him away and threw her fist in such a wild punch that Sirius was shrieking for Merlin's mother.

"You just _kissed _me!" she yelled.

"You just _punched _me!" he wailed. He turned to James, who was looking so red in the face that Jamie was worried he was going to pass out. "Prongs! Your sister hit me! _Me_! Me and my beautiful face! Do you think it'll bruise?"

James' mouth curved and Sirius didn't like it at all. His wailing stopped momentarily. "Prongs?" he asked hesitantly.

"I'm not sure if that will bruise, but I know this definitely will." And then he threw his fist at the other side of Sirius' face, the force throwing him against the wall. Sirius cried out in shock and James' eyes narrowed. "Don't you _ever _kiss my sister, you hear me?"

Sirius' eyes widened. "Abuse!" he shouted, running down the corridor. "Abuse! Abuse!"

Jamie looked on in amusement as Sirius' crazed voice gradually faded as he turned the corner. "I can't believe you just hit your best mate."

James frowned. "He kissed you."

"At least he _can_ kiss."

His eyes flashed a startling hazel. "You're _still _going on about that?" he asked in disbelief. "Why can't you just let it go?"

"Because I'm still finding it hard to believe," Jamie said matter-of-factly. She offered a bright grin at James' look of incredulity. "Come on, James. It's Lily, the only girl you've ever truly felt anything for. That should at least be an incentive, if anything."

James sighed. "I know, I know." He cursed and looked like he seriously wanted to ram his fist into the wall. "Jamie, what's wrong with me?"

She smiled, finally beginning to get a semblance of an idea. She hooked her arm through his. "I think you're in love, brother."

He jumped and pulled away from her. "I am not!" he said indignantly. "I'm attracted to her, maybe infatuated, but I sure as hell don't…"

Jamie winked. "Keep telling yourself that."

* * *

Lily was stumped when she didn't see Jamie _and _James in class. And when Sirius walked in looking very much like he had been mistaken for a Muggle punching bag, she knew something queer was going on. But before she could question him or even Remus, McGonagall had started her lesson and anything she had wanted to say was silenced for the rest of the class.

Jamie, however, was waiting for her the moment she stepped out of the classroom. The Potter girl was leaning against the wall, her hair tied high in a ponytail and looking very poised and amused. Her grin widened when she saw Lily and she practically bounded towards her.

"So how was class? Did McGonagall question you about my whereabouts?"

Lily shook her head. "If she noticed, she didn't say anything. Which reminds me. Where were you?"

Jamie's smile inched upwards. "I had some personal things to deal with."

Lily's eyes widened. "Personal things?" She stopped walking and dragged Jamie to the side of the corridor so they wouldn't stop the traffic. "What personal things? Are you all right?"

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry about it. James just… well, let's say he was having a bit of difficulty with some things."

Lily flushed and she ducked her head so Jamie wouldn't see her blush. But she saw it anyway, and if possible, she looked more amused than anything. Her eyes were glittering. "What's up, Lily? Is there something you want to tell me?"

She contemplated her answer. "Not really. I mean, I don't think it's a very big deal. Your brother was just acting like the idiot that he is."

"Really now." Jamie cocked her head. "James isn't always an idiot, you know. His actions usually make sense."

Lily blinked. She shifted the bag on her shoulder and looked at the passing students with only half-hearted interest. "Jamie?" she said distractedly. A boy had just accidentally bumped into a group of oncoming students and had dropped his books on the floor. She contemplated going over to help him out.

"Yes?"

"Does Potter have multiple personalities?" She could feel Jamie's stare boring into the side of her face. She looked back and noted her friend's look. "What? It's an honest question."

Jamie frowned and crossed her arms. "What do you mean by multiple personalities? James is just James."

"I don't really know," Lily said honestly. Her brows furrowed in confusion at her own question. "He was rude and cocky in the beginning of the year, and then he suddenly became really nice to me. Remember the whole centaur thing I told you about? He actually risked getting _killed_ just so my record wouldn't be marred."

Jamie grinned. "I guess he can be quite the romantic guy after all."

Lily continued as if she hadn't heard her friend. "And then earlier, back when we were still in Potions, he…" Her voice trailed off then, as if she didn't want to continue the sentence.

Jamie nudged her with a shoulder, curious despite herself. "He what?"

"I think he tried to... he tried to kiss me."

A look of recognition dawned in Jamie's eyes and Lily wondered what that was all about. It looked to her as if Jamie was realizing something that she had been puzzling over for quite some time, but if her smirk was any indication, she seemed to have realized something good.

"He _tried _to kiss you?"

Lily nodded, her face flushing an even deeper red. She was sure that her complexion clashed severely with her hair now. "Yeah, but for some reason, he ran away before it got anywhere. I… I don't really know how I'm supposed to feel about that."

"But are you sure he was trying to kiss you? Maybe you just had something on your face and he wanted to get rid of it."

Lily's head flew up. "You think so?"

Jamie shrugged. "How am I supposed to know? I wasn't there, remember?" Seeing how Lily didn't seem to know how to process that observation, she continued, "But then again, maybe he got too cowardly and ran away."

"Potter? Cowardly?" That comment brought a genuine smile to Lily's face. "I doubt it. Potter can be many things, but cowardly isn't one of them. And this is coming from someone who despises him."

Jamie arched a brow. "So you still hate James?"

Lily was startled. "What?" She ran the question through her mind again. Did she hate James? The obvious answer was an affirmative. Why wouldn't she? It wasn't as if those two measly little incidences that he called 'dates' could wipe away all the ill feeling she had for him over the past six and a half years.

But it could, the other half of her mind insisted. It really could. While those two 'dates' hadn't been extremely successful, she had seen the effort James and the Marauders had put into them, and she would've been lying if she said she wasn't gratified by the trouble they went through just to make her happy. Then did this mean that she no longer disliked James?

"Lily?" Jamie said impatiently. "Are you still alive in there?"

She gnawed at her lower lip. "I don't know, Jamie. I really don't."

Jamie nodded. "Actually, I consider it an improvement that you don't know. It's a sign that suggests you clearly don't hate James as much as you used to."

"He can be a nice guy," Lily admitted. "I'm beginning to see why so many people are attracted to his personality."

Jamie laughed and threw an arm around Lily's shoulders. She guided them towards the Gryffindor common room since they had no more classes that afternoon. "Oh Lily, Lily, when will you ever learn? It's the Potter gene. It never fails us."

Lily raised an eyebrow, amused despite the situation. "And are all Potters this modest?"

She snickered. "Of course. It's in our nature."

The two laughed all the way back to the common room.

* * *

Lily had to admit that she had no idea what she was doing up in the Astronomy Tower so late at night. It was already one in the morning, yet she couldn't sleep. Her conversation with Jamie earlier was constantly nagging at her, and despite herself, she realized she was going through every moment she had spent with James.

She had repetitively convinced herself that she shouldn't have been thinking of him, that it was wrong of her to constantly keep him on her mind. He was James Potter after all, prankster extraordinaire. He didn't deserve to be a part of her constant wondering.

And yet there was still that sliver in her mind, the traitorous part that kept on insisting that James was worth it, that he really was a nice upstanding guy, that she had been blind to not notice it in the past six years. She furiously shoved this part of her mind down. She would _not _dwell on him again.

Instead, she chose to admire the night. The sky was clear and the stars were very visible. It would've been a good night to do Astronomy homework, she mused thoughtfully. Sadly enough, she had stopped taking Astronomy since it didn't satisfy any of her career plans in the future.

Unwittingly, her thoughts trailed back to James again. What had he wanted to do earlier that day in the Ancient Runes classroom? Had he really intended to kiss her? Or was Jamie right when she had said there was something on her face? And what was up with his numerous personalities? First rude, then nice, then… she didn't even know what came after the 'then'. Lily had always known that James fancied her, but it couldn't have been _true _fancy, could it? It was common knowledge that he didn't know how to love, that he wasn't capable of being a devoted boyfriend, that…

"Evans?"

Lily let out a yelp of surprise and whirled around. Behold, the devil himself. James was standing by the entryway, looking as calm and collected as always. A gust of wind ruffled his hair and she shuddered when he tipped her a crooked grin. She shouldn't have been admiring him, she scolded herself. That was not something Lily Evans was supposed to do.

James mistook her shudder as an indication that she was cold and walked towards her, taking off his cloak as he went.

She took a step back when he held it out to her. "What?"

If he was amused by her wary stance, he didn't say anything. Instead, he gestured towards his cloak. "It's pretty cold up here. I don't want you to get sick."

Lily shook her head and deliberately turned away from him. It wasn't wise for her to be accepting _anything _from him with her state of mind, especially his cloak. She didn't need any influences at the moment.

James seemed rather hurt by her outright refusal. She remained alert when he took another step so that there was minimal space between them. "Why are you up here so late, Evans?"

"No reason." She was pleased when he voice came out collected. If anything, she could at least _try _to be normal around him. "I felt like enjoying the night air. Do you have a problem with that?"

"No, not at all." His tone reflected his astonishment at her cool tone. He hadn't expected her to react so indifferently to him. "I was just curious."

Lily nodded stiffly. Her heartbeat was erratic and she was all too aware of how warm his body was next to hers, especially with the chill in the night air. She knew she couldn't stay here, not when he was so close to her. "All right then. Good night, Potter."

James was surprised. "Where are you going?"

"To bed. It's late."

"You're avoiding me, aren't you?"

His comment made her stop in her tracks. She turned around and looked at him. "Excuse me?"

"You've been avoiding me ever since Ancient Runes, when I…" He stopped and made a face, as if he couldn't bear to continue.

Lily swallowed and took in a deep breath. "Of course not. You're over-analyzing the situation."

"Then why don't you talk to me?" Oh dear Merlin, why did he have to sound so _hurt_? "I didn't go to Transfiguration because I thought you wanted space, but you haven't even so much as _looked_ at me ever since. Do I bother you that much?"

She felt her stomach clench and she offered him a smile, albeit a little wobbly. She prayed that the darkness covered up her hesitance. "Since when have you become so sensitive, Potter?" She even managed a little chuckle. "I was just busy, that's all. There's a lot of work I have to do so…"

"That's bullshit and you know it," he snapped.

Lily was rather taken aback by his tone and she felt her temper rise. "So you're saying that I can't be busy? That I have to devote my every minute and second to you or else everything else I do is bullshit?"

Now he was exasperated. "Of course not, Evans. You know I didn't mean it that way."

"Well it certainly seemed like it," she said hotly, very thankful to be back on stable ground once again. She could definitely handle anger.

"Look, I'm not here to pick a fight with you, all right?" James leaned against the wall of the tower, his back facing the open observation area. "I just want to know why you're mad at me."

Now this was certainly news. "I'm mad at you?"

"Aren't you?" He lifted an eyebrow, adopting a rather sardonic look. "Why else would you be dodging me left and right?"

Lily was about to insist that she was most certainly not mad at him, but a last-minute thought entered her mind. Having him think that she was mad at him was definitely a valid reason for her queer behavior. After all, she had no plans of telling him that she was too scared of having him constantly on her mind that she couldn't face the real him.

So she settled for a firm nod and crossed her arms to make it appear more realistic. "You're quite perceptive."

Her agreement to his query seemed to tire him. Suddenly, he appeared weary. "So it wasn't my imagination then. Why are you mad? What did I do? Is it about earlier today?"

"Not just about that," Lily insisted. Now that she was given the opportunity, why not use it to vent at him? He certainly deserved it, after all the turmoil that he had put her through. "It's about these last few days. Why are you acting this way, Potter? You were such an inconsiderate git to me before and now you act like you're my boyfriend, taking me out on wacky dates and treating me as if you actually _like _me. What's up with that?"

James seemed to pale at her questions. He glanced around the tower as if he could find the answer hanging blatantly in the air. When he finally looked at her, he appeared uncertain. "Why… why are you suddenly asking these questions?"

"Because it's messing with my mind and I'm tired of it!" Lily even considered giving her foot a little stomp. "I can't figure you out, Potter. You have a barrage of personalities and I don't know _why _you're doing this. What could you possibly gain? What are your ulterior motives?"

"Believe me, Evans, I have no ulterior motives. I don't want anything from you."

"Then _why_?"

He seemed incredibly uncomfortable now. His hand was in his hair, tugging at it ever so often as if it was the solution to all his problems. "I… it's… oh Merlin you're going to hate me for this."

Lily stared at him.

James watched her warily and then expelled a breath when he realized she wasn't going to let it go. "It's… well, it was pretty much Jamie's idea."

Her eyes widened. "Jamie?" She briefly recalled the conversation she had with James during their last 'date' when he had taken her up in that floating carriage. "What about Jamie?"

"She told me that you believed in fairytales, that you wanted a Prince Charming. She wanted to make sure you got to experience everything before you graduated because it was what you wanted the most." He chanced a glance at her and then averted his eyes to the ground. "Jamie wanted me to be your Prince Charming."

There was a moment of silence… and then Lily exploded.

"Jamie wanted _you _to be my _what_?" she yelled. "You? She thought _you _could be a Prince Charming? Oh please!"

He winced at her condescending tone. "That was pretty much my reaction too, believe it or not. I thought Jamie had gone crazy."

"She is crazy!" Lily cried, throwing her hands into the air. "How could she have thought that you could… that I would… that we…"

"I agreed in the end," he continued, as if she hadn't made that earlier outburst. "Jamie told me the three things you wanted most from Prince Charming and Sirius, Remus, Peter and I set out to make it happen."

She struggled to think straight. "Three things?" The 'dates' suddenly began to make sense. "You mean the…"

"The candlelight dinner and the stroll under the moonlight." He shoved his hands into the pockets of his trousers and gave her a rather sheepish look. "Of course, those didn't turn out as well as I had planned for them to, but…"

"They were all pretty messed up," Lily said dryly.

"Yeah," he admitted. "They were. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry. We really did try."

Lily tried to process the information. Things were finally beginning to make sense. This whole 'Prince Charming' idea was the reason why James suddenly started paying immense intention to her and why he had become so nice. And even though Jamie had asked him to, it was still rather nice of him and the Marauders to plan such creative and amazing 'dates' for her. She knew they had spent time on it, but if they were only just doing Jamie a favor, why had they bothered to make everything so elaborate?

"So that's why you lavished so much attention on me."

James nodded slowly. "Yeah. We wanted to do our best."

Another thought suddenly occurred to her. "Wait, you said there were three things." At his wary nod, she said, "What's the third one then?"

James visibly flinched. He looked away from her and focused his gaze on one of the pillars of the tower. "That um… it's…"

"Yes?"

He met her gaze. Lily was startled by the brightness of those hazel eyes. They were warm, and curiously enough, they were comforting. But why? Why did she feel that way now?

James took a step forward.

She blinked.

He walked another few steps.

She took one back.

"Lily," he murmured.

"What?" Her reply was shaky.

And then he was there, with only a scant inch between them. He reached out and gently brushed a few unruly strands of hair out of her face and Lily felt her breath hitch.

"What… what are you doing?"

James smiled faintly and pulled her closer, wrapping an arm around her waist. He drew her in till her body was pressed against his and he leaned in, his lips barely an inch from hers. "Lily," he whispered. "I just want one thing to go right… just one." And then he closed the distance between them.

To say the least, Lily had never experienced _anything _like this kiss before. She was shocked when his lips first met hers and she tried to pull away, but granted, she didn't try very hard. James was kissing her so gently and slowly that it was more of a caress than an indication of severe passion, but the passion was definitely there. Oh yes, it was. She felt it in her rapid heartbeat and the fire that spun through her veins. His hand trailed down from her hair to her neck, her skin tingling where his fingers brushed. To say the least, this was definitely something she had never experienced before, and even after he pulled away, her lips were still tingling.

He assessed her warily, as if he fully expected her to slap him. "Lily?"

She blinked, still not in full control of her emotions. "Yeah?" she breathed.

"Are you okay?"

"I…" And realizing that she wasn't exactly coherent yet, she just nodded.

James blew out a breath of relief and gently pressed his lips to her forehead. "I'm glad," he murmured. "I'm glad this didn't turn out all too badly."

Lily laughed slightly. "Yeah." There was a pause as they stared at each other. "Yeah."

She stepped away from him and turned to look at the dark sky. For some reason, the cold night air didn't feel as cold anymore. It was as if she had suddenly developed her own heat generator. There was a subtle shift behind her as James shuffled around, and then he said, "I guess I'll be off now."

Lily nodded without turning back around. She heard him hesitate and then the echo of his footsteps gradually receded. It was only until then did she turn around. She saw the empty room and finally sagged against the wall, thoughts about James occupying her mind for the rest of the night.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Woops. I guess I'm updating this a few days later than I originally planned. I lose track of the days sometime. Anyway, what did you think? This is officially the last chapter of this story. There's still an epilogue coming up, which will pretty much wrap everything up. Nothing more to say here, I guess. Just... please review? :) Thanks! I really appreciate it when you do. Reviews really make me all the merrier!

_xox **KRS**_


	5. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: **All familiar characters belong to JK Rowling!

* * *

**And So It Ends**

* * *

"So."

"So."

"So?"

"So!"

Lily sighed and threw her quill onto the table. "What's wrong with me, Jamie? Why can't I concentrate?"

Jamie lifted an eyebrow. "Well gee, why don't you tell me?"

"I don't know!" Lily crossed her arms huffily and leaned back in her seat. She was beyond annoyed at her restlessness. The library was her sanctuary, the place she always gone to after a particularly nasty argument with James. But why didn't she feel any peace this time?

"I can't believe you're getting all flustered." Jamie closed her book and tossed it onto the nearby table. "And it's all because of my brother."

Lily's mouth fell open. "What? No!"

"Please don't tell me you're still denying it."

"I'm denying it because it isn't true! I don't care about James."

"Keep telling yourself that."

"But I really don't!" Lily leaned forward and stared at Jamie earnestly. "Does it look like I care about him? Does it look like I'm pining after him?" And then her eyes widened in horror. "It does, doesn't it? Oh Merlin, he's going to think he actually made me like him! I can't believe this is happening! Jamie, I…"

"Lily! Lily, listen to me!" Jamie grabbed her hands to get her attention. "You're actually making this a lot harder than it has to be."

She froze. "How?"

"You don't have to be scared about liking James."

Lily groaned and slumped in her seat. "But I _don't _like him, Jamie. I just… I mean I'll admit that he can be a sweet guy at times, but I just _can't _like him."

"Why not?"

"I wouldn't be me then."

Jamie scoffed loudly and rolled her eyes. "That's one of the dumbest reasons I've heard so far. And trust me, I've heard plenty of dumb reasons from you."

Lily was too preoccupied by her other thoughts to register that Jamie had just insulted her. She was struggling to remember previous years when she had absolutely despised James, the times when she would pop a vein after one of his particularly leering comments. The desire to curse him to oblivion had been a constant in her life, but try as she might, she wasn't able to bring up even a sliver of dislike.

She suddenly jabbed a finger at Jamie. "It's all your fault!"

The girl was so startled that she jumped and nearly fell out of her chair. "_What_? What's my fault?"

"If you hadn't started the whole Prince Charming shebang, I wouldn't even be in this situation!"

"I was only trying to help you," Jamie protested. "You were the one who always complained about the lack of decent guys in Hogwarts. And now that I found you one, you're denying his decency."

"I'm not _denying _his decency," she retorted. "I just don't like him _that _way."

Jamie lifted a brow. "I never said you _like _him."

"Exactly!"

"You _love _him."

There was a brief period of silence as Lily glared daggers at her best friend. It was one thing for Jamie to make fun of her but it was another thing for her to continuously imply the same thing. And as sad as it was, the more Jamie hinted at it, the more confused Lily got about the whole situation.

But even so, she refused to accept what Jamie was saying. She didn't love James. She _knew _she didn't. It just wasn't her and she was never one to break norms. But how could she prove it?

Jamie must've seen the expression on her face because she sighed and patted her hand sympathetically. "Just give it up, Lily. There's no use denying your feelings."

"No. I'll show you I don't like him. I'll prove it! I swear I will."

* * *

Lily decided that lunch was the perfect time. She knew Jamie didn't understand why she was so adamant about proving something that seemed entirely true, yet it made a lot of sense to her. It was hard for her to believe that James could worm his way into her heart, that he could be so alarmingly charming, that he could wipe away all those years of animosity with a simple smile and a few supposed dates here and there.

She had sworn that she wouldn't fall for his charm.

And yet she had.

She had really fallen for him.

But it wasn't _supposed _to happen. It wasn't in the book. She wasn't Jamie or James. She couldn't just step out of the protective bubble that had protected her all those years. If she fell for him now, how was she supposed to justify the past six years?

It was with this thought in mind that Lily entered the Great Hall. It was bustling with noise as usual and she immediately headed towards the Gryffindor table.

The Marauders were seated towards the middle of the table, eating rather heartily. Peter was heaping large helpings of food onto his plate and Sirius was chugging pumpkin juice as if he hadn't had anything to drink for the past ten years. Remus was the only one who looked remotely civil, but that was only because he and James seemed to be in an argument over something.

Lily slowly approached them. Her heart was thudding loudly in her chest and she knew without a doubt that Jamie was watching her. The nearer she got to the Marauders, the clearer James and Remus' argument was. Her brows furrowed.

"Look, have I read more books or have you read more books?" Remus snapped.

James scowled. "What does this have to do with how many books we've read? It's not that hard to figure out the difference between a potato and a yam."

"I'm allergic to yams. You _know _I'm allergic to yams."

"Yes _I _certainly know but it doesn't seem like you do. You just ate an entire one without realizing what it was!"

"I thought it was a potato!"

James threw his hands into the air, looking rather like an exasperated mother. "And I thought you were smart."

"I _am _smart!"

"How could you have gotten all those Os on your O. and not be able to tell the difference between a potato and a yam? They aren't even shaped alike!"

Remus grabbed a potato off the plate in front of him and shoved it in James' face. "What is this?"

"A potato."

"It looks like a yam!"

Sirius finally finished drinking his juice. "Yams are pointier at the ends, mate," he said knowledgably. "Potatoes' ends are round."

Remus glowered. "Thanks for the lesson, Padfoot."

Peter lifted his head to look at the commotion and nearly choked on his food when he noticed Lily. "Evans! What are you doing here?"

Lily froze. Three pairs of eyes turned to look at her and she couldn't help but feel a self-conscious blush creep across her cheeks. She hadn't expected or intended to be the center of attention.

She offered a hesitant smile. "Hi?"

"Lily," James breathed. He got out of his seat, a faint furrow in his brows. "Is something wrong?"

She shook her head automatically, slightly disoriented by his closeness. "No, not at all. I just felt like saying hi." She nearly stabbed herself. Surely she could've come up with a better excuse than that.

James seemed to agree with her. He tipped his head and arched a brow inquiringly. "Really? Just to say hello?" At her insistent nod, he smiled slightly. "I see."

Sirius jumped out of his seat. "Are you _that_ stupid, Prongs? Evans isn't just here to say _hello_."

Lily flushed and took a step away from James to clear her mind. Being in such close proximity to him reminded her of their kiss on the Astronomy Tower, and it wasn't a topic she wanted to think about at the moment.

"You're thinking too much, Black," she retorted. She took in a deep breath and squared her shoulders. She was here on a mission. "Potter, sit."

James blinked, startled by the sudden demand. "What?"

"Sit. I have to talk to you."

He did. Remus raised a brow and Sirius let out a wolf-whistle. "Ooh, you've got a controlling woman on your hands, Prongs."

James rolled his eyes. "Just eat your food."

Peter scooted aside so Lily could sit between him and James. A plate materialized in front of her right as she took her seat, but she ignored it and turned to James. He was looking at her expectantly and she thought she sensed a certain degree of wariness in him. Did he think she was going to chew him out for the kiss?

She sucked in a breath in an attempt to settle her rapidly beating heart and blurted, "Does it seem like I like you?"

His eyes widened in shock. Lily watched as he physically jerked back a little, as if she had verbally pushed him. He looked properly surprised and Lily wondered whether the question had been _that _startling. She glanced at the rest of the Marauders and saw that they had completely abandoned their eating. Their attention was focused on her and James.

James blinked a few more times and finally managed to choke out a shocked sound. "What?"

Lily suppressed the urge to turn tail and run. "Do I act like I fancy you?"

"You… you do?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "That's what I'm asking you."

"I…" James ran a hand through his hair, looking rather confused. "I'm not sure." He smiled sheepishly. "I don't really understand you at times, Lily."

Too nice, her mind told her. Too nice. She had expected him to flaunt his charm, to boast that all girls liked him and that she was no exception. And yet he hadn't done that. He had been humble, modest… truthful. But _why_? He wasn't supposed to…

Her eyes narrowed. "You don't understand me? I'm not that complicated."

"Sometimes I feel that you like me, but other times I feel like you can't stand my presence." He shrugged and fiddled with his fork. "You can be a little bipolar."

Lily rested her elbows on the table. "I'm not bipolar. I'm just trying to prove to Jamie that I don't like you."

Peter looked incredulous. "You're going to say it to Prongs' face? Isn't that a little… rude?"

Lily ducked her head and wondered whether she ought to continue what she was doing. A part of her wanted to just dismiss everything and eat her lunch peacefully, but the more stubborn side of her insisted she prove Jamie wrong. And truthfully, Lily _hated _being wrong.

"Yes," she eventually said and then turned back to James. "I thought I'd let you know that I _don't_ like you. I don't like your hair, your nose, your eyes, your ears, your mouth, your face, your…"

"Whoa, wait, wait!" James interrupted, eyes wide. "Are you seriously going to list off every part of my body?"

She looked at him evenly. "Yes."

"But why?"

"Because I don't like you."

He raised both eyebrows and observed her with a rather steady look. "Any particular reason why you're emphasizing this? With the way you've been ignoring me these past few weeks, I think I got the idea already."

"I told you already. Jamie won't believe me."

"You're going through all this because you want Jamie to believe you?"

Lily frowned. "Is there something wrong with that?"

James shook his head. He lowered his gaze to the empty plate in front of her and gestured towards the food. "Why don't you make better use of your time and eat something? You don't want all this good food to go to waste."

"And have some pumpkin juice," Remus offered, shoving a goblet in front of her. "You must be thirsty after talking so much."

Lily bit her lip. Why were they being so nice to her after she had pretty much insulted their best friend? She shook her head and got out of the seat. "It's okay. Jamie is probably waiting for me."

"I doubt she'd mind if you ate with us," Remus pointed out.

She couldn't help but glance at James to see his reaction. He merely shrugged and went back to his food. She sighed and gave them a brief smile before walking towards the end of the table.

Jamie was shaking her head when Lily seated herself. "That was just sad, Lily. Just sad."

She stiffened. "What do you mean? I proved it already. I don't like James and I don't need him to be my Prince Charming."

"Why do you keep on denying it?" And for the first time, Lily realized that Jamie sounded genuinely confused… and a little bit sad. "You're putting yourself through a lot of hell that you don't need and you're pretty much pulling James through a labyrinth. It's not doing either of you any good."

Now it was Lily's turn to frown. "A labyrinth?"

"An emotional labyrinth," she snapped, sounding rather angry. "He likes you, Lily. It's so damn obvious that I can't believe you can't see it."

Lily busied herself by heaping food onto her plate. "He doesn't like me. He's just amused because I don't like him."

"He's _amused_?" Lily almost dropped her fork when Jamie slammed her palm on the table. "Oh please, Lily, can you stop being so utterly _daft_? James has been going after you for _six years_. No one can be amused for that long!"

"I'm sure he could," Lily muttered.

Jamie ignored her. "And you know what he told me when he was completing that last wish? He couldn't kiss you that first time because he was worried that you wouldn't like it! He was worried that he'd hurt you and your feelings." She let out a little laugh then. "And this is _James _we're talking about. He's _never_ treated a girl as carefully as he treats you."

Her cheeks were flushed by the time she finished her spiel. She chugged down the rest of the pumpkin juice in her goblet and wiped her lips with the back of her hand. "So think about it, okay? If you really, truly don't like James, then fine, ignore what I just said." Jamie stared hard at Lily. "But if you do like him, then don't let this opportunity get away from you. James isn't always going to wait for you."

And then Jamie left, swinging her bag onto her shoulder as she went.

Lily's shoulders slumped and she sagged in her seat, suddenly overwhelmed by the onslaught of emotions that overtook her. She had been right about that day in Ancient Runes. He _had _wanted to kiss her… but he had pulled away. And now she knew why.

But why did he care so much? Was what Jamie said really true? Did James really like her?

* * *

Lily stuffed another piece of Honeydukes chocolate into her mouth, determined to stay awake. It was already two in the morning, but the Marauders had yet to return. She knew because she had been sitting in the common room for the past five hours, waiting for James. She wanted an answer and she was going to get it no matter what.

The clock ticked to two thirty and the Marauders walked through the portrait hole.

Lily stood as they filed in, footsteps quiet so they wouldn't wake anyone. She waited until their gaze landed on her, and then she smiled, a tad wary. The Marauders were known to be biting when they wanted to be and she sincerely hoped that they weren't going to tear her to shreds after what she had said to James earlier that day.

"Hello," she said quietly.

James regarded her with faint inquiry. "It's late, Lily. What are you still doing up?"

"It's the chocolate," Sirius said, before Lily could say anything. He had evidently spotted the wrappers. "Remember the last time I ate a whole pound of it? I couldn't sleep for three days."

"That's because you mixed it with firewhiskey," Peter reminded. He winced at the memory. "That wasn't a particularly good experience."

Remus laughed softly and started ushering Sirius and Peter towards the staircase. He glanced back and offered Lily an encouraging wink before pushing his protesting friends up the stairs. They were halfway up when the noise quieted and Lily had no doubt that Remus had told them his intention.

She turned around and looked at James, who had seated himself in the armchair across from the loveseat she was sitting in. He leaned back and smiled at her tense expression. "Relax, Lily. I won't bite."

"Really?" she asked. "Not even after what I said to you during lunch?"

"Well," he said slowly. "I assumed that you'd give me an explanation."

Lily flushed slightly and lowered her gaze.

An eyebrow lifted. "Am I wrong?"

"Well… no."

James grinned and spread his hands out in a 'there you go' expression. "Let's hear it then."

Lily wondered where to begin. She had thought long and hard about what Jamie had said. It had taken her the better part of the afternoon and the evening, but in the end, she realized that Jamie had been so right. It was wrong of her to question James.

She fidgeted slightly. "That outburst during lunch wasn't intentional. I was just in a bit of… emotional distress."

"Emotional distress?"

"Jamie was pretty much pushing me to admit that I like you, and under that circumstance, I couldn't very well let her think she was right."

If James was mad, he didn't show it. "So you basically told me I was worth next to nothing because you didn't want Jamie to be right?" He chuckled and shook his head. "Only you would do something like that."

Lily flushed and ran a hand through her hair. "Yeah, well, at least it's better than just admitting…" She suddenly froze, her eyes wide. What had she just said? Did she actually…

He cocked his head. "Did I just hear something?" At her shocked look, he grinned slightly. "I did, didn't I?"

"No!" she cried. "I mean… you… No, you didn't! You're imagining things. You're misguided. You're…"

"Yeah? I'm what?" he interrupted.

Lily was hyperventilating. "You're stupid! You think everyone loves you! You…" His hand suddenly flew out and covered her mouth, cutting off her next words.

"Be quiet for a moment, will you?" She nodded, eyes wide. "Good. Now, can I ask you a few questions?"

She nodded again.

James smiled. He leaned forward and lowered his voice. "Did you like your wishes?"

Her breath hitched in her throat. He was looking at her so intently, so earnestly, and his eyes were just _so _hazel. His face was smooth, but she thought she could detect a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes.

"Lily?" he prompted.

She cleared her throat. "They were… interesting." At his hesitant look, she hastily added, "I've never been so entertained before. So… I did. I did like them."

His lips curved. "And was I an adequate Prince Charming?"

"You were." There was no hesitance in her response.

His smile was positively dazzling. He laughed lightly and gave her an affectionate pat on the head before leaning back in seat. "Thank you. That's all I needed to know."

Lily blinked, surprised. "So you aren't mad about what happened that day on the Astronomy Tower?"

"Mad?" James blew out a breath and shot her a look. "No, I'm not mad. Exasperated maybe, but I never expected that particular part to be easy. And I suppose I should thank you for not killing me afterwards."

She nodded slowly, not really enjoying the humor that he had injected into his sentence. "I see." There was a period of silence as she assessed him carefully. His face was a mixture of amusement and polite inquiry. What was he thinking? Now that the whole Prince Charming thing was over, what was his next step? Did he plan for them to go on as they had or did he want something more?

He grinned at her thoughtful expression and then yawned and stretched. "All right then, I think I'm going to bed now."

Lily practically jumped out of her seat. "That's it? You're just going to bed?"

"Is there something wrong with that?"

"Well no, but…"

James smiled and grabbed her arm lightly, pulling her closer. "You're wondering where this puts us, right?" He chuckled. "Ever the analyst, Lily."

She huffed. "Is it wrong to wonder?"

"Of course not," he murmured. He brushed his knuckles across her cheek. "I don't know what you have in mind, but as far as I'm concerned, I'm not giving up on you any time soon."

Her heart fluttered.

James' smile deepened. "And I actually think I have a better chance this time." He tapped her nose affectionately. "Sweet dreams, Lily. See you tomorrow."

He shot her wink and blew her a kiss before he disappeared around the turn of the staircase.

Lily's eyes remained on the stairs, long after James had gone up. Her heart was beating a mile a minute and she knew without a doubt that there was a strong flush on her cheeks. For once, James was quite the predictor. She knew already, without a doubt, that if he were to ask her out again, she would agree.

She had gotten her Prince Charming after all.

_**FIN.**_

* * *

**Author's Note: **It's done, it's done, it's done! Whew. This makes me excited :) Hope you guys all enjoyed this short story. I certainly had a lot of fun writing it. Thanks so much for reading!

_xox **KRS**_


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